


The Key to Your Heart

by HaleHathNoFury (My_Trex_has_fleas)



Series: Beacon Hills Omegaverse or Derek Hale Is The Moodiest Omega to Ever Mood [1]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alpha!Stiles, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Based on a Tumblr Post, Courting Rituals, Developing Relationship, Enemies to Lovers, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, Fluff, Full Shift Werewolves, Hijinks & Shenanigans, I don't know what the boys want to do yet, Jackson Whittemore is a Hale, Knotting, M/M, Maybe - Freeform, Minor Allison Argent/Isaac Lahey/Scott McCall, Minor Danny Mahealani/Jackson Whittemore, Minor Laura Hale/Braeden, Minor Lydia Martin/Jordan Parrish, Minor Vernon Boyd/Erica Reyes, Mistaken Identity, Omega!Derek, POV Multiple, Past Chris Argent/Peter Hale, Polyamory, Shameless Smut, Slow Burn, Sort Of, Stiles is a smartass, a smidgen of angst, derek is a grouch, mpreg mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-01
Updated: 2020-02-17
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:53:57
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 35,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22511299
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/My_Trex_has_fleas/pseuds/HaleHathNoFury
Summary: Stiles Stilinski has come to the small town of Beacon Hills to write a feature on Derek Hale, son of Senator Talia Hale and one of the most sought after (and elusive) omegas in the U.S. He's got drive, persistence, charm and a plan to get Derek to give his first and only interview about his cunning plan to have his suitors try to win his hand by managing to get the key to his heart from the alpha of his rescue wolf pack.Stiles is most definitely NOT going to fall in love. Nope, not even a little bit.Dammit.
Relationships: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski
Series: Beacon Hills Omegaverse or Derek Hale Is The Moodiest Omega to Ever Mood [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1708441
Comments: 198
Kudos: 1198





	1. Welcome to Beacon Hills

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MarigoldVance](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarigoldVance/gifts).



> This is my version of Sterek based on haaskarotta's tumblr post (https://haaskarotta.tumblr.com/post/184616003264/story-idea-the-most-wanted-woman-in-town-has) where Derek is a much sought after omega who disguises himself in wolf form to outwit all the alphas who wish to court him. I know it's probably been done already but this one WOULD NOT LEAVE ME ALONE so here's my version :D I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> This is for my babe, MarigoldVance. You have always been there for me and you're like the sister I never got to have. This is a thank you and also a chance for me to say that it hurts like hell now, but it will get better. I love you very much.

If anyone had ever suggested that Stiles’ degree in journalism would have seen him travelling across California to write about courting, mating and bonding he would have laughed in that person’s face. Loudly. 

‘I had grand plans, Scott.’ he sighed, feeling utterly morose. ‘I was going to cover politics, tech events that would change the world. Murders.’ He snorted in disgust at the brief that his editor had landed on his desk just that morning. ‘This is a waste of my talent.’ 

Scott just grinned, showing brilliant white teeth as he bit into his apple with gusto. 

‘Finstock likes the gossip.’ he pointed out. ‘You should take this as a huge compliment. He thinks this could make the front page. I had to really convince him to let us cover it.’

‘It’s a courting story.’ Stiles huffed. ‘They’re a dime a dozen.’

‘Not this one.’ Scott grinned. ‘You should read the brief. It’s pretty funny.’

Stiles rolled his eyes at him but he read the paragraph of text and then goggled at the words. 

‘Hale?’ he asked. ‘As in Senator Hale? As in the Hales of Beacon County?’

‘The very same.’ Scott looked smug. ‘That’s why we need to take this assignment and run with it.’ 

‘Holy shit!’ Stiles was on the verge of hugging him. ‘Scotty, I love you and I take back every bad thing I’ve ever said about you.’ 

‘Good.’ Scott got up and grabbed his jacket. ‘So, I suggest we talk this out over lunch.’ 

‘Dude.’ Stiles grinned at him. ‘We live in the same apartment. We literally had breakfast together two hours ago.’

‘I know.’ Scott replied. ‘But this is going to need some strategy behind it.’

‘Okay, but let me run some ideas past Finstock first.’ Stiles was already headed for the Editor-In-Chief’s office, grinning at how he could see Finstock’s wild hair sticking up in view of the internal window. If he was going to do this, he was going to do it in style.

-

A day and a half later, they were in Stiles’ blue Jeep, duffle bags and Scott’s photographic equipment in the back, and headed north on the four hour drive from San Francisco to Beacon Hills, Beacon County. It was the home to the Hales, California’s version of the Kennedys and the setting for a rather unconventional story involving a wiley omega and a pack of potential alpha suitors that were all being completely foxed, in a matter of speaking. Stiles had read the story and found himself snickering at the shenanigans that were going on, completely on the side of Talia Hale’s only son Derek and his attempts to hold said courting alphas at bay. 

Things had moved on a lot in most social circles, but the Hales were nothing if not traditional. Talia and James Hale had three children. Laura was an alpha and destined to follow in her mother’s footsteps, cutting her teeth in her mother’s senatorial office when she was still in high school. Cora, the youngest, was a beta and still in college. She was an internationally competing MMA fighter and by all accounts as feisty as an alpha so it didn’t come as any surprise that the middle child would be the same. 

Derek Hale was the only son, and also the only one of Talia’s children that shunned the limelight. He’d opted for a far more low-key occupation, studying zoology at college and specialising in large predators for his doctorate. Now he worked for the Forestry Service, helping to run the Beacon Hills National Park, home to one of the country’s latest reintroduction programmes for those predators, including wolves. He was the omega in question and Stiles snickered as Scott read other pieces that had been written about him and how his rather unusual demands on those alphas that wanted to court him had started. 

It seemed Derek Hale had no time for anyone that wanted to court him based on his family’s wealth and political influence. His dark good looks had also been something of a drawcard. He was, to put it bluntly, absolutely drop-dead gorgeous. 

‘Damn.’ Stiles whistled through his teeth. He wasn’t a typical alpha himself, far too laid back and only competitive when he felt invested as opposed to just because he wanted to win. Scott had often remarked that Stiles had more in common with his own beta status and most people had taken them as such all the way through high school when they’d both presented at sixteen and college. 

‘I’m not into dudes, but even I have to admire that jawline.’ Scott tapped his fingers over the screen of his tablet. ‘Top of his class at U.C. Davis, played baseball for the Aggies. He got scouted for the MLB but turned them down.’ Scott’s eyebrows were in his hairline. ‘Damn. You know how few omegas play college ball, let alone get selected for the draft? And he turned them down? That’s insane.’

‘I get it.’ Stiles shrugged. ‘Not everybody wants it. It’s more about being able to than actually doing it. Maybe he decided that wasn’t what he wanted after all. It seems to fit in with his personality.’ 

‘Yeah.’ Scott chuckled. ‘There’s a comment here from an alpha called Ennis Bryce. He’s a pharma millionaire that tried to court Hale last year. Apparently his quote ‘pretty face nowhere near makes up for his terrible personality’ unquote.’

‘Sounds like sour grapes to me.’ Stiles grinned. 

‘Hale ignored every one of his displays, told him to fuck off in public several times and then made a bonfire out of Ennis’ courtship gifts.’ Scott was bordering on gleeful. ‘He sounds like he’s a complete asshole. You two should get on famously. If he gives you the time of day, that is.’ 

‘Ah, now you see Scott that’s where I have an advantage.’ Stiles said. ‘I’m not going to court him. All I want is an interview.’

‘Hmmm.’ Scott gave him a sidelong look. ‘I think even that is going to be a challenge. Braver journalists than you have tried and failed.’

Stiles scoffed at him. He had a plan.

They stopped at a roadside burger shack for lunch and Stiles read over the reports Scott had dug up for him while he inhaled a double cheeseburger and two orders of curly fries. He may not look or act like a traditional alpha, but he certainly ate like one. 

He nearly choked on his burger when he read about Derek Hale’s latest ploy to get the marauding alphas to leave him alone. In his work as a forestry ranger, it transpired that he had adopted a litter of wolf cubs and raised them until they could be released into the preserve. Their semi-domesticated status had made them perfect test subjects for reintroduction and it broke Stiles’ heart that there were no devastating pictures showing Derek with them, sitting amongst them or hiking with them through the preserve. In fact, every picture of Derek Hale in circulation had mysteriously disappeared as soon as he’d turned sixteen and presumably presented as an omega. Stiles had used every bit of Google-fu at his disposal and turned up exactly dick.

Now the wolves were paying back Derek’s care by taking part in his plan. Each morning, he put the key to his remote cabin located in the preserve around the neck of one of his wolves. The challenge was for the courting alphas to retrieve the key by going to sit in a designated spot at a specific time of the day. If the wolf allowed them to take the key, they would then have to hike through the preserve to Derek’s cabin and he would consider their suit. The wolf, a large black male named Shadow, was the tamest of Derek’s wolves and he was there every day at the appointed time. However, he was as choosy as his carer and he’d so far managed to elude every alpha that had tried to get the key. 

The story had gained traction in recent weeks though because now there were now fewer than five alphas currently attempting to court Derek. The most high profile of them had to be Kate Argent. She was the daughter of another Senator, Talia’s main rival in the House. Gerard Argent was a confirmed conservative with a hard line in traditional values that said very succinctly that omegas should be barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen. Kate was beautiful in a chilly blonde way. She dressed in classic alpha power suits and owned a vast arsenal of personal firearms and by all accounts lived for the trophy hunt, the bigger the better. 

‘Okay.’ He mauled his straw and hoovered up the remainder of his strawberry milkshake. ‘She’s fairly terrifying. Why does she even want him? They clearly have absolutely nothing in common.’ 

‘Good question.’ Scott said, crumpling up his napkin. ‘You ready to get back on the road?’

The next couple of hours passed quickly and before long, Stiles saw the sign for Beacon Hills. He took the turn off and the wilderness around them eventually changed to quaint clapboard farmhouses and orchards before it became the town proper. It was like stepping back in time a little, the streets lined with eighteenth century buildings, most of which were hip little cafes or antique shops or bookstores, with the latter making Stiles’ heart thump. There was very little he loved more than trawling through speciality bookstores. 

They drove downtown, Scott navigating using his smartphone, until they got to a red brick building with green shutters and flower boxes that were spilling over in a riot of colour. The sign proclaimed it to be the Full Moon Pub and Inn, and Stiles pulled up right in front. 

‘It’s the only inn in town.’ Scott explained. ‘Finstock thought it would be good for us to stay right where the action is, so to speak. The alphas are all here.’ 

‘Should be entertaining.’ Stiles was already writing copy in his head. He grabbed his bag and slammed the trunk closed just as a tall willowy pair of women came down the front steps. 

‘That’s Kali and Julia Baccari.’ he said to Scott. They were one of the more unique suiting parties, being an alpha and a beta respectively. It wasn’t unusual for such pairs to seek out an omega to act as surrogate and take the place as a second mate to the alpha. It wasn’t Stiles’ cup of tea, but he had no problems with it in principal. It was just a preference that he freely admitted was influenced by his own parents. Noah and Claudia Stilinski had fallen in love and mated and were still as stupidly devoted to each other as they had been thirty years before when they’d met at college. Claudia was the epitome of an emancipated omega, a professor of English at UCSF while Noah was a high ranking police detective. Theirs was a modern relationship with both parties emphasising equality and respect as the foundations of a happy mating. It had also had the side effect of convincing Stiles that it was the only kind of relationship he was happy to entertain. 

They went inside and found a rather glamorous blonde behind the reception desk, her curls cascading down around her shoulders, bare in a leopard print peasant blouse and set off by scarlet lipstick and sparkling brown eyes that gave them a shrewd once over as she smiled a welcome at them. 

‘Good afternoon, gentlemen.’ she said. ‘Let me guess, you’re our intrepid journos?’

‘He’s the journo.’ Scott replied cheerfully. ‘I’m just the shutterbug.’

‘Nice to meet you.’ The blonde said, handing Stiles a pen and turning the register around to face him. ‘I’m Erica. I own the Full Moon along with my mate, Boyd.’

‘Stiles Stilinski.’ Stiles signed his name with a flourish and accepted the key she handed him while Scott was busy. ‘I’m looking forward to picking your brain. I’m sure you know the best gossip.’ He winked at her and she gave him a brilliant smile and gave Scott his key. 

‘Oh, honey.’ She dropped her voice to a conspiratorial purr. ‘You have no idea.’ 

‘Erica, have you seen…’ The man that stepped through the door marked Staff behind the reception was massive. His shoulders were easily as broad as Stiles’ and Scott’s put together, but his smile was friendly as he nodded to them. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt.’

‘No problem.’ Stiles replied. ‘You must be Boyd. I’m Stiles Stilinski. This is my photographer, Scott McCall.’

‘Nice to meet you both.’ Boyd came around to shake their hands. He was wearing an apron over his jeans and he wiped his flour dusted hands before shaking. ‘I have to say we’re both really excited about you coming. Most of the journalists just want to focus on the story about Derek, but your editor said you’re doing a full profile of the town too.’ 

‘I am.’ That had actually been Stiles’ idea. He had felt the omega story would be too thin for a feature and thankfully, Finstock had bought it. ‘I thought it would be good to give the story some background, make it a cut above just another gossip piece. I’d be really glad if you could give me some tips on who I should speak to.’

Boyd and Erica shared a grin. 

‘We may be able to help you with that.’ Erica said. ‘How about you and Scott have dinner in the bar tonight and we’ll see what we can do.’

‘It’s going on our expense account so we’ll buy any amount of food you need us to.’ Stiles laughed. ‘So long as I end up with a story that really fires up the imagination.’ He gave Erica a thoughtful look. ‘You wouldn’t by any chance be able to include how to get an interview with the Hales in those tips, would you?’

Erica’s smirk told him she knew exactly what his prize was. Derek Hale had not, in any of the time this whole scenario had been going on, given a single interview. He was as obnoxious to the media as he was to his suitors and the rest of the Hales weren’t much better. 

‘You’ll have to do more than just boost our food sales then.’ Her smile had turned sharp. ‘That is very valuable information.’ 

‘Believe me, I know it.’ Stiles replied. ‘Getting an interview with the reclusive Derek Hale would make my editor’s day and probably mean one hell of a scoop for me.’

‘It’s not going to be easy.’ Boyd had his arms folded and a twinkle in his dark eyes. ‘Derek is a very private person and he’s also very resentful of any intrusion into his daily life. You should prepare yourself for disappointment.’ 

‘Ha.’ Stiles shoulder his hand and brandished his key at them. ‘I once managed to maintain a ten year crush on a girl I was at school with. She never once gave me the time of day and yet I stayed true. I think you’ll find I am very persistent.’ He headed towards the stairs, Scott in tow. 

‘Up the stairs, second floor at the front.’ Erica called after them. ‘By the way, what happened to her?’

‘Oh, she’s at MIT working as an experimental mathematician.’ Stiles replied over his shoulder. ‘She turned out to be an amazing friend once I got over myself.’ 

He smiled as their laughter followed him and Scott up. The stairs creaked alarmingly and were a little crooked, the age of the building clear in the way it had been built. 

‘Are you going to invite her up?’ Scott remarked as they got to their rooms. ‘You know she was hinting last night.’ 

It had transpired that Peter Hale, brother to Talia and uncle to Derek and a known recluse just like his nephew, was one of Lydia’s idols. His work in astrophysics was of great interest to her and she’d batted her eyelashes all the way through their Skype call the previous evening in an attempt to charm herself an invitation.

‘I should.’ Stiles unlocked his door. ‘Meet you downstairs in a couple of hours? We can take a walk around town and then have dinner.’

‘Sounds like a plan.’ Scott disappeared inside his room and Stiles followed suit, smiling at the bright space in front of him. The room was uncluttered, the bedstead iron and dressed in simple white linen. There was a door to a stylish white tiled ensuite to the left and a pair of huge sash windows that looked out onto the street below. 

Stiles dropped his bag on the floor and took stock. He was taken with an engraved map on the wall above the desk on the far side of the bed, walking around to get a good look at it. It was dated 1860 and showed the town and the land surrounding it. In the middle of a patch of trees was a stylised manor titled Hale House. He wondered if it was still there and whether the Hales still inhabited it. They were a secretive bunch and Talia’s security was tight. 

Next to the map was another print. This one was also an engraving but not coloured like the map. It was of a stand of trees and a starry night. Inside the clearing was a stump and on it was a wolf, clearly howling at the full moon above. For some reason, it sent a little shiver down Stiles’ spine. He shook it off, then took out his cell and messaged his parents to let them know he’d arrived safely and then sent one to Finstock. There was a text from Lydia asking what the town was like so he replied, writing an ode to its charm and suggesting she come take a look for herself. Lydia replied that maybe a couple of days would be a good idea. She’d been working flat out for a month and needed a break and would book herself on the next flight out. Beacon Hills was only an hour from Sacramento, so it would be an easy trip to get her. Stiles smiled and made a note to book her a room at the inn. 

He threw himself onto the bed, the fatigue from the drive settling into his bones. It wouldn’t hurt to close his eyes for a few minutes so he snuggled down into the supremely comfortable mattress, toed off his chucks and dropped off into a well deserved nap.


	2. A Wolf In Human Clothing

Derek blew a deep breath out through his nose and was gratified to see the alpha flinch and withdraw his hand very quickly. He was always amused by the different reactions he managed to elicit and this alpha, Beacon’s new Sheriff Jordan Parrish, wasn’t an arrogant asshole like most of the others were. Still, he really wasn’t Derek’s type at all, too All American Boy. He seemed affable enough, but then again Derek knew better than to trust an alpha’s character on first impression. 

Paige had been sweet too, but she’d also been intelligent and kind hearted. She’d looked at him like he was a person, not just some omega to be conquered, and their brief courtship had been marked by it’s gentleness as they both fumbled through their first awkward steps. Paige had been as far away from a typical alpha as it was possible to be, although the tongue lashing she’d given him on their first meeting when he’d disturbed her cello practice had spoken to her fiery alpha temper once she was roused. That had appealed to him because Derek liked feistiness and he liked intelligence and he’d grown to love those things about her until the day she was killed in a tragic accident while out on a nature hike. The fall had snapped her neck cleanly and she hadn’t suffered, that much was obvious. Derek still berated himself for not going with her that day, but Paige had loved her solitude just as much as he did and when he’d found her at the bottom of the ravine on the north edge of the preserve after searching for her all day with the Sheriff’s Department, Derek had known that his best chance at happiness had died with her. 

He’d mourned for her and still did. Paige had been entranced by plants and flowers and had planned to study botany so they could have complimented each other’s careers. Now she lay under a beautiful stone angel in the Beacon Hills cemetery and Derek had sworn off alphas for life. The only reason he even entertained these tedious meetings was because Talia had asked him to. Still, he’d held his ground on just how he was going to be courted and Talia had agreed. So now he went to the chosen meeting ground every day at the appointed time in his full shift form and sat, baring his teeth in a wolfy grin as he watched the alphas that came to court him fall over themselves to try and get the key that hung around his neck. 

Being a werewolf had its perks.

Jordan eyed him from his seat on the massive fallen log that Derek was perched on.

‘You’re not even going to give me a chance to get that key, are you buddy?’ He grinned and Derek was a little tempted, he had to admit. It was a nice smile, broad and genuine in a way that Derek hadn’t seen for a while. Unfortunately, Jordan’s scent just held no interest for him at all, but he did make a mental note to call Erica later and tell her that Jordan seemed decent enough. She liked to get reports on his suitors so she could do evil things to their food if they pissed him off. 

He gave Jordan a couple of slow tail wags and then squinted at the setting sun. It was past the allotted hour and he executed a graceful leap off the log and trotted off into the forest, hearing Jordan let out a resigned sigh at his departure. He chuffed in amusement and ran, his paws thudding the ground as he bounded along feeling exuberant at having deterred yet another suitor. He was feeling happy enough that he might even make an appearance at the Full Moon, maybe commiserate with the luckless Jordan Parrish and see if he’d make a decent friend instead. It would be good to add someone new to his rather limited social circle and get Erica and Laura off his back. Thankfully, Cora didn’t give a hoot how antisocial he was. 

He ran for about two miles, ending up in a clearing where his forestry vehicle stood waiting. Derek shifted and got dressed, taking the key from around his neck and secreting it in his glove compartment. He had to check in at the ranger’s station before he went off duty and then he would go back to his little cabin in the woods, have a shower and get changed before heading in. He fancied one of Boyd’s incredible burgers, maybe with a double order of fries and a couple of ‘secret’ brews. 

His mouth watering at the thought of succulent beef and a double layer of cheese, Derek drove back down the slope. He hummed along to the radio until he got to the small cluster of timber buildings at the visitor’s entrance to the preserve, parking up and going inside. There he found Isaac and Braeden, both of them gossiping happily about a pair of new arrivals. Braeden was Laura’s wife, someone who’d blown into town three years before and swept his stroppy sister right off her feet. She was also an alpha and the fact that Senator Hale’s daughter was not only gay but intent on mating her fellow alpha had caused quite a lot of ripples in political circles. Talia had not been deterred in the slightest. She was a campaigner for equal rights, hence her acceptance of Derek’s rather odd method of weeding out suitors he didn’t care for. 

Isaac was a bitten member of the Hale pack. He was a sweet natured omega, and one of Derek’s high school friends whose father had been an abusive drunk until he’d wrapped his car around a tree after a drunken binge that had seen him beat Isaac to within an inch of his life. Talia had given Isaac the bite to save him and his new life in the pack had seen him blossom into a happy, grounded individual. He grinned at Derek and Derek knew something was definitely up.

‘Why are you two as thick as thieves?’ he asked. Braeden smiled and wagged her finger at him. 

‘Nope.’ Her dark eyes were sparkling. ‘You first. How was our terribly earnest baby Sheriff?’ 

‘He’s okay.’ Derek relented. ‘Not my type though.’

‘None of them are your type.’ Isaac pointed out. ‘So you let him down easy?’

‘I didn’t eat him if that’s what you’re asking.’ Derek deadpanned. ‘Would be kind of hard to explain.’

‘I like him.’ Braeden said. ‘I was talking to Tara and she said he’s really sweet.’

‘Too sweet.’ Derek sighed. ‘Very little in the way of personality.’

‘Or maybe you’re just too fussy.’ Isaac, lobbed a pen at him and Derek snatched it out of the air without even looking. 

‘I just have standards.’ he replied and they both smiled at him. 

‘We know you miss her.’ Braeden said. ‘But it’s been ten years, Derek.’

‘I know.’ He shrunk in on himself, his shoulders drooping. ‘And it’s not like I don’t want to find someone, I just know that they’d have to be…’ He made a helpless gesture and Braeden’s eyes softened. 

‘Perfect.’ She smiled. ‘There has to be a spark.’

‘Yeah.’ Derek leaned back against his desk. ‘We had that and I’m not going to settle for less.’

‘I understand.’ She got up, squeezing his shoulder as she went past. ‘I feel the same way about your sister.’

‘Ugh.’ Derek made a face. ‘That I don’t need to know. I can smell her all over you, which is bad enough as it is.’

‘Yeah.’ Isaac chimed in. ‘You both reek of happiness. It’s disgusting.’ He held out a fist and Derek bumped it with his, both of them giving her their best shit-eating grins.

‘Fuck both of you.’ Braeden said cheerfully and flipped them off on her way out the door. ‘Now, excuse me so I can go fuck my beautiful wife.’

‘I hate them both.’ Derek muttered, hearing Braeden’s motorcycle start up outside. 

‘So, are you going to the Full Moon tonight?’ Isaac asked. ‘Erica said there’s a couple of new guests. Journalists.’ He said the last word with relish. 

‘Jesus fuck.’ Derek pinched the bridge of his nose. ‘Why?’

‘These ones are different apparently.’ Isaac shrugged into his jacket. ‘They’re doing a profile on the town, not just your grumpy ass. Erica is beyond thrilled.’

‘I’ll bet.’ Derek grumbled. ‘I was going to, but now I think I’ll give it a miss.’ Almost as if she’d heard him speak, his phone rang and Derek winced when he saw Erica’s smile flash across the screen.

‘Spooky.’ Isaac sniggered and left him to try and fend her off. Derek glared at him but Isaac completely ignored him. Wincing because he knew what was coming, he relented and answered the phone. 

‘No.’ he said and could almost hear Erica’s pout over the line. 

‘Come on.’ she wheedled. ‘The journalist is going to be in the bar tonight. It would be great to deliver him Beacon’s most famous attraction.’

‘I don’t do interviews, Erica.’ Derek growled. ‘You know that.’

‘He’s doing a whole section on us.’ She sounded extremely smug. ‘His photographer is going to take pictures of the food and everything. That will seriously put us on the map so Boyd is pulling out all the stops tonight. A glimpse of you and Stiles will be so thrilled he’ll give us the best reviews he’s ever written.’

‘What the hell is a Stiles?.’ Derek asked and Erica snorted. He knew better than to argue with her. She was as persistent as Laura and Cora could be and he’d gotten into the habit of treating her like just another sister and agreeing when she got something into her head. ‘Fine. But I want steak.’

‘You can have the biggest, baddest steak we have.’ Erica giggled. ‘And seriously, you’ll like this journalist. He’s nice, not an asshole.’

‘Is he an alpha?’ Derek used his sugariest voice. 

‘Um.’ Erica hedged. ‘Maybe.’

‘Then he’ll be an asshole. I’m taking my blockers before I come.’ Derek replied and hung up. 

-

Stiles came back to the hotel beaming. The whole town was even better than he’d thought. It was like something out of a country living magazine. People were going to eat up what he would present to them. 

‘This whole place is just so…’ He practically wriggled in excitement. ‘Even if the whole omega thing is a wash, we’ll still get a great feature. Finstock can just put it in the travel section.’

‘Mmmm.’ Scott was standing staring across the road and Stiles peered at the young man that was just getting out of a sleek black Camaro parked outside the inn. He was tall, omega-lithe and had a head full of model worthy bronze curls and Stiles frowned. There was a telltale waft of scent coming their way which meant the omega wasn’t using blockers and he had to admit that he smelled really good, warm like vanilla and coffee. Still, Scott wasn’t usually attracted to men so this behaviour was very out of character.

‘Dude.’ He moved to block Scott’s view. ‘What are you doing.’ 

Scott blinked and seemed to pull out of himself. 

‘Sorry.’ He looked a little bemused. ‘I’ve never had a reaction like that to a male omega before.’

Stiles grinned. He was all for fluid sexuality. 

‘It’s okay, buddy.’ He slapped Scott on the shoulder in commiseration. ‘Although, judging from that car, he’s probably got one hell of a sugar daddy so you’re fresh out of luck anyway.’ 

‘You think he has an alpha?’ Scott suddenly looked stricken. 

‘I’d bet my left nut on it.’ Stiles laughed, amused by Scott’s sudden angst. ‘That’s an alpha car through and through. Besides, it’s not like you’d be interested, right?’

‘No.’ Scott laughed it off, but his eyes were still following the man as he stepped up into the sidewalk in front of the inn. 

Stiles raised an eyebrow at him, then felt vindicated in what he’d said a second later when a tall man got out the driver’s side of the Camaro. He didn’t give off a scent and wasn’t quite as tall as the cherubic omega but his broad shoulders and general muscularity had Stiles giving Scott a told you so look. They made a striking couple, the other man’s dark hair and tan contrasting beautifully with his partner’s. He was even dressed like a stereotypical alpha in a softly worn leather jacket, jeans and heavy workboots, the kind of forest alpha chic that upmarket casual clothing companies loved to use to showcase their designer flannels and jeans that cost over two hundred dollars a pair. 

‘Damn.’ Scott said. ‘Good thing I didn’t take a bet.’. 

‘Come on.’ Stiles squeezed Scott’s shoulder. ‘How about I used the magazine’s credit card to buy you a nice juicy ribeye?’

‘Okay.’ Scott perked up at that. ‘Erica also said something about Boyd’s red velvet cheesecake being better than anything they have in San Francisco.’

‘Oh?’ Stiles smiled at him, walking them across the street. ‘Then we’ll just have to try it.’

There was a new face behind the reception desk when they got in. This one belonged to a dimpled man with carefully styled black hair. He gave them a little wave as they came in. 

‘You’re Stiles and Scott, right?’ he asked and they headed over. ‘I’m Danny. I’m the third business partner.’ He smelled like an alpha, in spite of his cheery disposition, and Stiles found himself instantly liking him. He shook Danny’s offered hand, noting the gold mating ring he wore. Up close, Danny’s scent was clearly blended under his expensive smelling aftershave. 

‘What is your stake?’ he asked. ‘If you don’t mind me asking.’

‘The money side and the IT.’ Danny replied. ‘I’m also mated to Jackson Whittemore. Who happens to be silent business partner number four.’

The name rang a bell and Stiles had a mental image of Talia Hale’s personal assistant. He was rumoured to be an illegitimate Hale, most commonly thought to be Peter Hale’s, and an omega. His propensity for politics and the accompanying mentality was well-known and Stiles raised an eyebrow at the thought of someone as sharply obnoxious being mated to someone who looked so laid back they were almost asleep. 

‘This town is turning out to be full of surprises.’ he remarked and Danny laughed, his dimples caving in. 

‘Were you doing some sightseeing?’ he asked and Scott nodded. 

‘This town is beautiful.’ he said, but his eyes were already straying to the entrance to the bar. Danny noticed and gave Stiles a questioning look. 

‘Some of your regulars maybe?.’ he explained. ‘There was an omega that just came in that with an alpha that I’m pretty sure could kick both our asses. Dude was ripped.’

Danny’s dark eyes flitted in the direction of the bar and something happened to his face, a look of intense amusement coming and going in a second and ending in a friendly grin. 

‘Erica said you’d be eating here tonight.’ he said. ‘Have a couple of drinks at the bar first. And don’t worry about that alpha, he’s a teddy bear.’ 

He was still chuckling when they walked away and Scott gave Stiles a look. Stiles shrugged and went into the bar. It was well done, all gleaming wood surfaces and comfortable looking booths. A young woman was manning the bar and she gave them an equally friendly smile and came over, sweeping her chestnut brown hair over her shoulder. 

‘Hi.’ She leaned on the bar. ‘What can I get you fellas?’

‘What’s good?’ Stiles asked and she waved a hand at the draft taps in front of her. 

‘We do a house pale ale that’s really good.’ she said. 

‘Two of those then, please…’ Stiles let the sentence hang and she smirked. 

‘Malia.’ she replied. ‘Malia Tate.’ 

‘Nice to meet you.’ Stiles nudged Scott but he had his back to the bar and was staring at the furthest booth along. The omega from outside was sitting facing them and Stiles noticed that he was staring right back. That surprised him because alphas were the jealous type but the one with him wasn’t even looking back to see what had captured his companion’s attention. Then again he was clearly using blockers so obviously he was confident enough to not have to spray pheromones all over the place. 

‘Dude.’ He elbowed Scott. ‘Quit it.’

‘I’m just curious.’ Scott sounded almost defensive. 

‘Jesus, I swear you’re impossible sometimes.’ Stiles muttered, handing over some money for the beers Malia had just delivered them. ‘If you’re so interested in him, go speak to him.’

‘Not like that.’ Scott was quick to argue. His face was telling a whole other story though and Stiles had to bite back a snicker. 

‘You should go say hello.’ he said to him. 

‘You should.’ Malia agreed. ‘Isaac’s a sweetie and he’s single.’ 

‘What?’ Stiles was surprised enough to look back at the pair. ‘Then who’s the alpha?’

‘The alpha?’ Malia’s dark eyes lit up. ‘Oh honey. That’s not an alpha.’ She winked at him and went to serve another couple down at the end of the bar, leaving Stiles gaping at both his best friend and the omega who was now giving Scott the flutteriest pair of eyelashes that Stiles had ever seen. 

‘Okay.’ Scott took a huge slug of beer and then put on his determined face. ‘I’m going in.’ 

‘Goddammit. Don’t say anything stupid.’ Stiles swiped at him but Scott dodged it neatly and sauntered over to the booth. The waiting omega grinned and that was when his companion turned and now it was Stiles’ turn to feel like he’d been struck by lightning. 

He’d been fooled by the shoulders and the aura of strength but the face spoke of a beauty that no alpha or beta would ever be able to duplicate. Stiles was very proud of not being a cliche but at that moment every fibre of being was acting exactly like the alpha he was. 

The other omega frowned, thick black brows drawing down over eyes that were light - maybe blue, maybe green or grey, Stiles couldn’t be sure. He had a beard, neatly trimmed to frame a mouth that wasn’t typically omega sensual but the clean lines of his cheekbones had a delicacy that made him look oddly vulnerable as he stared back at Stiles, lips just parted to reveal slightly oversized incisors. 

‘Wow.’ Stiles breathed and not even the lack of scent could deter him from the visceral reaction he was having. 

The omega’s eyes narrowed at him and then he was up and moving, coming straight over to Stiles. His nostrils flared as he got to him and Stiles could do nothing but stand there and let himself get boxed in, his heart pounding. 

‘Hi.’ He managed to speak without stuttering and the omega glared at him, even more devastating when he was pissed off. He jabbed a forefinger into Stiles chest. 

‘Before you get any ideas,’ he stated, his voice higher and softer than Stiles’ expected it to be. ‘I’m not giving you a goddamned interview.’ 

Then just like that, he stalked right out of the bar without looking back and leaving Stiles standing looking like a fish out of water. He was trying to speak but nothing was coming out and eventually he tuned back in to see Scott and the omega, Isaac, laughing at him. 

‘Oh man.’ Isaac had bright blue eyes that were dancing as he followed Scott to the bar. ‘This is bad.’

‘You’re telling me.’ Scott smirked. ‘I’ve never seen him struck dumb before. Stiles, close your mouth, dude. You look ridiculous.’ 

Stiles turned to them, still feeling like he was underwater. 

‘Who the fuck was that?’ he asked and Isaac chuckled, an evil little sound that had Scott looking at him adoringly. 

‘You mean our resident grouch?’ His teeth were very straight and very white. ‘That was Derek Hale.’

‘That?’ Stiles all but squeaked. ‘Him? But he’s so...so…’ He couldn’t find the words. Something was clearly very wrong with him. 

‘And that is why we have a town full of alphas all trying to get that damn key.’ Boyd said from where he was now standing behind the bar with Malia. ‘One look at him and they all go stupid.’ He shook his head at Stiles with mock sadness. ‘We thought you’d be different, Stiles.’ 

‘Nobody is different.’ Malia snorted. ‘God knows why, though. He’s such a grumpy bastard.’ 

‘Is he?’ All Stiles could think of was those stupid bunny teeth and the eyebrows that looked almost sentient. He swallowed hard, trying to clear his head. Suddenly he felt far too hot and his pants felt way too tight. 

‘He’s a lost cause.’ Isaac said sagely. He grinned at Scott and held up his empty glass. ‘Now, how about you buy me another drink and I’ll tell you all the gossip.’


	3. The Rival

Derek had to sit and take a moment once he got back in the Camaro. He was almost panting, his heart racing and his control getting dangerously close to slipping. He hadn’t felt like this since he was a teenager, practically skipping home the afternoon he met Paige. He’d wanted to howl and prance and run in circles with joy, her scent of sage and wildflowers underscored by the resin on her fingertips and the soft wash of lavender from her perfume making his head spin. Other alphas had always smelled too overwhelming to him, but she was perfect. Derek had never ever expected to have another reaction like that and every alpha that had come to court him had left him unimpressed, his even more sensitive wolf nose turning up at every scent he encountered. 

Tonight he had gone to the inn expecting nothing but the same. Isaac had been gossiping all afternoon with Erica about the new guests it transpired. Isaac had already been interested in her description of the beta photographer. He’d never had a serious relationship with an alpha, his father’s legacy still casting long shadows of mistrust that isaac had never been able to reconcile himself with. He simply didn’t feel safe with alphas in that context, even if he’d been a lot better since coming into the pack. Betas were non-aggressive and kinder in his view and Derek had always been more than supportive in his search for a partner, so when Isaac had looked up and seen someone walkin, Derek had simply smiled at the way his friend had been staring. 

He’d only been half listening to the conversation at the bar, used to blanking out people around him for politeness’ sake. The first thing that had caught his attention had been Isaac’s eyes going wide and his little gasp, followed by footsteps that told him that the beta was coming over. He’d looked over his shoulder and that was when he’d seen him. 

Derek wasn’t someone who put a lot of stock in physical attractiveness. He knew all too well that people saw something that looked pretty on the outside and ignored what was on the inside. He was constantly treated by courting alphas like a prize, like he was worth only how good he’d look on their arm and so the stereotypical alpha look had always been more of a turnoff than a turn on. Paige had fitted none of those boxes and it was one of the things Derek had loved most about her. 

Now he stared at the lean young man at the bar and felt his heart give a little jump as attraction flared in his chest in a way that it hadn’t for ten years. Everything he did find attractive was there right in front of him, all rolled into a gangling sparkly eyed package. The journalist was pale, his brown hair messy and there was a tiny cluster of moles along the left side of his jaw that made Derek suddenly want to get up and walk over to see if he smelled as good as he looked. The rather overzealous aircon in the bar (Boyd liked to cook on an open grill in the kitchen) meant he couldn’t smell him from the booth and then he kicked himself mentally for even entertaining the thought that the alpha was attractive. 

He’d gotten up and stormed over, hoping to intimidate the hell out of him. Malia and Boyd were both grinning in anticipation but Derek had gotten to within a foot of the alpha and then been smacked in the face by a scent that had him inhaling sharply before he’d even been able to stop himself. 

This alpha’s scent wasn’t anything like Paige’s. Where hers had been soft, this was edged with salt and an almost electric tang, like the air before a storm on the ocean. It was undercut with an unctuous note that made Derek think of the edges of deep water in the preserve, of lush greenness and it was utterly compelling. The alpha had looked back at him with amber warm eyes and Derek knew he was in serious trouble, so he did the only thing he could think of and threatened him before tucking his tail between his legs and running off as fast as he could. He didn’t need to look back to know that his pack would all be looking astonished at his behaviour. 

Now in the car he sat and thanked every supernatural power he could think of that he’d used blockers. If the alpha had smelled him even a little, it could have been seriously problematic. He needed to get away and fast. He felt a little bad for Isaac, but with the way his friend had been staring at the beta photographer Derek was sure he wouldn’t have a problem making friends. 

He started the Camaro and pulled out of the lot. He needed advice and, as much as he hated to admit it, there were only two people he could talk to that would be straight with him. 

In a manner of speaking. 

-

‘And here we are.’ Erica delivered the plates with a grand flourish and Stiles nearly wept at the beauty of the steak in front of him, accompanied by curly fries (hand cut no less and triple fried, according to Boyd). Scott had opted for a baked potatoes the approximate size of his head, swimming with butter and sour cream and he was giving it serious heart eyes. 

‘This looks so good.’ he almost moaned and Stiles saw his Isaac went a little pink in the cheeks. 

‘It really does.’ he mused, his chin resting on his hand and Scott looked up from where he’d been trying to inhale his steak and then flushed. 

Stiles watched the truly awkward look that passed between them and rolled his eyes. He grabbed his cutlery, attacking his steak and nearly passing out from pleasure when he ate the first bite. 

‘I am going to make you so famous, this place will be crawling with customers.’ he told a waiting Erica. She grinned and rubbed her hands together. 

‘Do that and you’ll have a lifetime of free steak in your future.’ she replied, flouncing off with a distinctly happy bounce in her step. 

‘It would be great if you could.’ Isaac said, cutting his burger in half. ‘This place is amazing and they work so hard. I’d love to see them reap the rewards of that.’

‘We’ll do our best.’ Stiles replied. ‘So what do you do?’

‘I work for the Forestry Service.’ Isaac replied. 

‘Ah, along with the mysterious Mr Hale.’ Stiles raised an eyebrow at him. He’d thankfully recovered from his momentary lapse and Isaac chuckled. 

‘Derek’s a good guy.’ he said. ‘He just has very strong ideas about what his place in the world is and who he wants to associate with. I can’t blame him and his family have been very good about making sure that I have the same choices. Before, it was just assumed that I’d get mated off to whoever came along first.’ His mouth quirked and Stiles wondered what exactly the story there was. 

‘And now?’ he asked and grinned when Scott choked a little next to him. This was definitely turning out to be one hell of an evening. 

‘Now, I am able to say that I don’t want an alpha.’ Isaac said. ‘There are things in my past that mean I don’t trust them, no offence. I certainly don’t want to be mated to one and Talia has supported me in that decision.’

‘So you’re waiting for a kind natured beta to come along and make puppy eyes at you?’ Stiles asked and was delighted at how Scott wasn’t even pink anymore. He was now a fully fledged scarlet and Isaac gave them both a beatific smile. 

‘That’s exactly what I’m waiting for.’ he replied, innocently licking a smear of ketchup from the side of his hand. 

-

‘Oh boy.’ Laura’s dark brows were as judgmental as his own could be. She stepped back and held the door open and Derek sighed and walked inside. He took off his jacket and she hung it up for him. 

‘Is it that bad?’ he asked and she shrugged. 

‘Well, Boyd called as soon as you’d left and told me that you got a faceful of alpha that had you posturing like you were fifteen again so, I’d say so.’ she replied, but there was a distinct twinkle in her green eyes. 

‘Dammit.’ Derek muttered, following her past the grand staircase and into the kitchen. Braeden was at the stove, busy stirring something that smelled like chilli. She turned and grinned at him. 

‘Oh, this is too good.’ she said. ‘You look like someone just kicked you in the nuts.’

‘Brae.’ Laura cautioned but Derek could smell their amusement. 

‘It’s not funny.’ He said, going to the kitchen table, grabbing a wine glass on his way. Laura filled it for him, the smell of merlot and wolfsbane a siren song that promised him denial for one more night. He drank half of it and she solemnly refilled it. 

‘Are we getting drunk?’ she asked and Derek nodded. 

‘Yes.’ he slumped forward onto the table. ‘I refuse to acknowledge this evening.’

‘Oh Bun.’ Laura stroked the back of his head. ‘You knew this was going to happen eventually.’

‘No.’ Derek muttered from inside his arms. ‘Nothing is happening. I don’t know what you’re talking about.’

‘He’s in town for a week, according to Erica.’ Braeden took a covered plate of tortillas from the oven and brought them over to the table. ‘It’s going to be hard to avoid him.’ 

‘I don’t want an alpha.’ Derek looked up, his eyes flashing gold. ‘He needs to go.’

‘Well, I hate to say it but the quickest way to get him to leave is to give him what he wants.’ Laura pointed out and he bared his teeth at her. ‘And don’t give me that look, you know I’m right.’ 

‘Ugh.’ Derek reached for his glass. ‘You sound like a fucking laywer.’

‘I am a fucking lawyer, Derek.’ Laura grinned. ‘So here’s what we’re going to do. I’ll call Mr Stilinski in the morning and arrange an official interview where we control the situation and he will only be allowed to ask approved questions. He’ll have to say yes because it will still be the first time you’ve spoken about this. Once he’s done, we can then pack him up and send him and his photographer on their way. Although, you may get a little resistance from Isaac.’ She waved her cell at him. ‘Erica says he’s quite smitten with Mr McCall.’ 

‘This is a terrible idea.’ Derek grumbled. He did trust his sister’s judgement implicitly though and knew that she was right. ‘But I’ll do it.’

‘Excellent.’ Laura winked at Braeden. ‘We can totally play this to the town’s benefit.’

Derek glared at her.

‘You and Erica are completely in cahoots.’ he accused and she gave him her most winning smile, with fangs in it. 

‘Not just us.’ she replied. ‘Mom even thinks it’s brilliant. She’s cut her visit to Washington short and her and Dad and Jackson will be back tomorrow.’

‘Danny will be pleased.’ Derek accepted his plate of tortillas from Braeden. ‘Just make it as painless as possible. Please.’ 

Laura’s eyes softened and she gave him a comforting subsonic growl.

‘I’ll do my best.’

-

‘So how did this all start?’ Scott was now asking questions as well, giving Stiles a chance to plough his way through his second piece of cheesecake, thanking the gods for his alpha metabolism. 

‘It’s not really my place to say.’ Isaac said and Erica nodded. She’d joined them once they’d finished eating. 

‘Yeah, Derek’s intensely private.’ She shrugged. ‘You’d have to ask him that yourself.’

Stiles finished his cheesecake and sighed, half in loss and half in resignation. 

‘Well, our first meeting didn’t exactly go off well.’ he said. 

‘So?’ Erica said. ‘You’re just going to give up?’

‘No.’ Stiles frowned. ‘But I do need an alternative approach.’ 

‘Maybe you should go to the courting site tomorrow.’ Isaac suggested. ‘Julia and Kali were going to but the rules say that if a new alpha turned up, any alphas that have already tried once have to give way.’

‘Hmm.’ Stiles considered the idea. ‘It would give me a feel for what goes on. Then I could try and schedule something with Derek directly. Scott can get some pictures too.’ 

‘Yeah.’ Isaac nodded eagerly, smiling at Scott. ‘I can help him with that while you’re there. Not of Shadow though. He’s seriously camera shy and Derek really doesn’t want anyone knowing what he looks like in case they try something.’ 

‘Then it’s settled.’ Erica declared. ‘You can go along to the Forestry station tomorrow after we do the food shoot in the morning.’ 

‘Deal.’ Stiles said. ‘I can’t wait to see what you come up with for breakfast.’ He stopped speaking when he saw both Erica and Isaac suddenly sit up, their faces changing from friendly to downright angry in a second. He glanced at the bar and saw that Malia was similarly affected. 

‘What’s wrong?’ he asked, exchanging glances with Scott, who was equally bemused. 

‘Let’s just say an unwanted visitor has arrived.’ Erica growled and Stiles didn’t use that word lightly. She actually did sound rather animalistic and he could have sworn that for a second her eyes glowed gold. She got up without saying anything else and strode through the bar like a woman on the warpath. 

She only got halfway before another woman came in, one Stiles instantly recognised. Kate swaggered in, oozing alpha arrogance from every pore and she immediately had Stiles own alpha instincts raging. He wasn’t even aware of how he was gripping the edge of the table until Scott put a gentle hand on his thigh. 

‘Dude.’ he murmured. ‘Dial it back.’

Stiles took a deep breath, nose wrinkling at Kate’s scent. It was harsh and spicy, cinnamon and cloves and black pepper that highlighted her own alpha pheromones. She seemed to pick up on his blatant hostility and giving him a look before dismissing him and turning her attention to Erica. 

‘Erica.’ she said. 

‘Kate.’ Erica all but spat, holding her ground. ‘You’re not welcome here. I told you to take your things and leave.’

‘Oh sweetie.’ Kate just tilted her head. ‘I’m a paying guest. And my brother and his daughter have just arrived. You really don’t want to turn down three of us do you? From what I hear, this place needs all the revenue it can get.’ 

Erica glared at her but finally backed down and Kate went over to the bar. Stiles gave Isaac a questioning look and he grimaced and dropped his voice. 

‘Kate Argent.’ he muttered. ‘She’s a regular. She comes every year to try and court Derek, even though he’s made it incredibly clear that he’s not and never will be interested in her. She came here in our Senior year, and even though she was ten years older than him, she made a huge play.’

‘Okay that’s creepy.’ Stiles said and Scott agreed. 

‘It gets worse.’ Isaac said. ‘She was a substitute teacher when she first got here. I’m sure you know, her dad is Gerard Argent, one of Talia’s rivals in the senate. He’s been after Beacon Hills for years.’

‘Why?’ Scott asked. ‘He wants to run here?’

‘No.’ Isaac’s face was like thunder. ‘He made all his money in property development. Shitty stuff like taking over land that was either designated a national preserve or that belonged to disenfranchised people, buying it for nothing and then turning it into a bunch of tacky hotels, casinos and golf courses. Beacon Hills is the largest undeveloped space in Northern California and it’s worth a fortune. It was pretty clear that Kate was his in. If she mated with Derek, she could try and get her hands on the preserve, not to mention the fact that she’s like scarily obsessed with him.’ 

‘So she got a job at the high school with the sole intention of getting Derek into a mating bond?’ Stiles was appalled. That little tidbit of information definitely hadn’t been public knowledge. ‘That’s terrible.’

‘Yeah, well she’s a shitty person.’ Isaac made the same odd growling noise Erica had. ‘She was the poster child for bad touch, I can tell you that. She would corner Derek everywhere - after class, at swimming practice. One time he said she even got to him in the locker room while he was in the shower. Thankfully, he’s not some wilting flower so he fought her off and then the school board finally fired her ass, but Gerard bought off the old Sheriff and so no charges were ever brought against her. Now she comes here, stirs up shit and then gets run out of town. If she’s brought somebody here this time, it’s because she needs backup.’ 

Right on cue, two more people came in. The man was in his forties, tall and blond like his sister. Kate’s niece was completely different though, slender and with a cloud of dark brown curls. She gave them a cursory glance, smiling when they looked at her. 

‘He’s an alpha. She’s a beta.’ Isaac said, but he was suddenly frowning. Not only that but Scott was too. 

‘This is getting better and better. Talk about a side of intrigue to go with an already unusual story. Stiles’ journalistic nose was twitching. There was definitely a story and a half going on and he suddenly felt like coming to Beacon Hills was definitely going to be worth his time. 

-

Derek was feeling much better. Peter had joined them halfway through dinner, helping himself and coming to share yet another bottle of wine. Out of all his family, Peter was the one that Derek admired the most. He was also an omega, single for his entire adult life. Derek knew there was a secret there, a story about an alpha that Peter had met at college and fallen in love with and who’d been forbidden from mating with him because of his family. He’d been the one to tell Derek after Paige had died that he didn’t owe anyone anything, especially alphas. He was also the one that Derek had gone to after Kate had tried to force herself on him and the reason she’d been fired from the school. 

‘You see, dear nephew.’ He was grinning and waving his wine glass, already a little tipsy. ‘Love is purely chemical. A trick of the brain. Romance is dead and we are but slaves to our instincts. A truly educated omega will never bow to what comes down to mere chemistry.’

‘Jesus.’ Laura muttered. ‘You’re not helping, Peter.’

‘Bullshit.’ Peter said brightly. ‘I’m the most helpful person in this room.’

‘You’re a hermit.’ Braeden replied. ‘You spend almost your entire life in your observatory and make no attempt to actually connect with anyone.’ 

‘And that’s the way I like it.’ Peter gave her a haughty sniff. ‘My books, my studies and the wonder that is the cosmos. I don’t need anything else and neither does your brother.’ This was directed at Laura and she growled at him, her eyes flashing red. 

‘My way is better.’ she countered. ‘Maybe an interview will finally put this to rest and those alphas will all leave him alone.’ 

Derek sighed, zoning out from the bickering and taking the opportunity to check his phone. There was a message from Boyd simply telling Derek to call him ASAP, so he dialled and got up from the table. 

‘Hey.’ he said when Boyd answered. ‘What’s up?’

‘You may want to sit down.’ Boyd growled. ‘The bitch is back and she brought company. Apparently our stern warning this morning went unheeded. She’s probably going to try and jump the queue like she did last time. What do I do?.’

Derek felt his blood run cold, followed by a rush of white-hot anger that made his briefly lose control. He snarled into the phone, eyes glowing and his claws scratching on the granite countertop. Behind him, the conversation stopped dead. 

‘Fuck.’ He took a deep breath. ‘Who did she bring?’

‘A man and a young woman.’ Boyd said, sounding completely unimpressed. ‘She says they’re her brother and his daughter, although they seem far more like regular people. I’d even go so far as to call them pleasant.’ 

Derek chewed on one claw and then sighed. 

‘Thank you for telling me.’ he said. ‘I guess I’m going to have to avoid her until she gets the message.’

‘I’m sorry for ruining your damn evening.’ Boyd muttered. ‘But I also knew you’d want a heads up that she’s still in town.’

‘Yeah.’ Derek replied. He glanced over to see the others all looking at him. Peter and Laura were both half shifted like him, picking up on his distress and going into overprotective mode. ‘I’ll tell everyone else.’

He hung up and Laura growled, deep and resonating with alpha power. 

‘It’s her isn’t it?’ She looked and smelled furious. ‘Dammit. Erica said they were going to try and get her leave of her own volition but I’m assuming she didn’t.’

‘Yeah.’ Derek went to the door. ‘I need to get out of here.’

‘I’ll come with you.’ Peter was up and moving. ‘Also, did Boyd say that she’d brought her brother?’

‘Yeah.’ Derek frowned. ‘Why?’

‘No reason.’ Peter muttered, but Derek would have had to be deaf not to hear the way his heart stuttered. He decided not to press anything though. Christ knew that Peter had always given him his space and never asked him to talk about things that made him uncomfortable and it was only fair that Derek returned the favour.


	4. An Unexpected Meeting

Stiles woke up early. He was used to running to an unconventional timetable, often staying in the news room while the cleaners were busy or getting there before it was properly light. He knew that, given a choice, Scott would sleep for a while yet and this would give him a chance to explore a bit. 

He had just the place in mind to go as well.

The night before had been marred by Kate’s appearance. Isaac had been clearly unsettled by her and he’d made his excuses fairly quickly after that, throwing the newcomers one last glance before he left. Scott had walked him out to the taxi that Erica had called and by the time he’d come back in, Chris and Allison Argent (Stiles was supernaturally quick off the mark with Google) had gone upstairs. They had seemed almost embarrassed by Kate’s behaviour and Stiles had to admit she rubbed him up all kinds of wrong ways. He and Scott had finished their coffee and escaped upstairs, only to find Allison Argent going into the room opposite Scott’s. She’d given them an apologetic smile and closed the door like she was hiding. Stiles felt sorry for her. 

He showered and dressed, pulling on his jacket and wearing his sturdy hiking boots. Scott’s room was silent when he passed it, stopping to listen and moving on. Downstairs, he went into the bar only to stop when he saw that their neighbour had clearly had the same idea. Allison was in a booth, sipping a cup of coffee. She looked up when he entered and then nodded at the seat opposite her. 

‘Please.’ she said when he hesitated. ‘Consider it an apology for severely wrecking the mood last night.’ 

Stiles took a seat, looking at her in unashamed curiosity. Allison was sweetly pretty, her brown eyes complimenting a rosy complexion and dimples that were quite clearly lethal under other circumstances. 

‘Stiles.’ It was Boyd, coming out with what smelled like heaven on a plate. ‘You’re up early.’ 

‘So are you.’ he replied. 

‘Baking and lying in don’t exactly mix and I'm working on food for the shoot. .’ Boyd smiled. ‘You want coffee?’

‘Yes please.’ Stiles inhaled the smell of the pastries on Allison’s plate. ‘And about a thousand of those.’

‘Coming up.’ Boyd tipped him a little salute and disappeared behind the bar. Allison waited for him to leave, ducking her head in clear embarrassment. 

‘They’re so nice.’ she said. ‘I’m so sorry we’re here.’

‘Why are you here?’ Stiles asked. ‘I mean, I know about your aunt. But why you?’ 

Allison sipped her coffee, narrowing her eyes at him over the brim of her cup. 

‘You’re a journalist.’ she said. ‘I overheard some conversation last night.’

‘Yeah.’ Stiles held out a hand. ‘Stiles Stilinski. Does that mean you’re not going to answer my questions?’

Allison shook his hand and tilted her head. 

‘Only if you protect your sources.’ she replied, then frowned. ‘There’s a lot of complications.’

‘I’ve heard a few of them.’ Stiles replied. ‘Like how your aunt first tried to court Derek when he was still at school and she very much wasn’t.’ He felt bad when Allison became visibly distressed. 

‘I don’t know how much you know about my family, but none of it is good.’ she replied. ‘Things are getting out of control. The reason my father and I are here is because we heard she’d come back. We’re trying to make sure that she doesn’t do anything...regretful.’

Stiles was now more intrigued than before. He wanted to ask her another question but Allison seemed to realise that she’d said more than she should have and got up. 

‘I’m sorry, I have to go.’ She was brusque and Stiles didn’t even have a chance to protest before she was all but running out the bar. 

‘Damn.’ He looked at Boyd, coming over with his breakfast. ‘What the hell was that about?’

‘Not sure.’ Boyd replied. ‘From what I hear, Chris’ side of the family has tried to steer clear of all the political bullshit.’

‘Interesting.’ Stiles mused and started eating. 

He set out, taking the Jeep and driving the south road out of town. He hit thick trees soon enough, enjoying the play of sunlight through the branches and breathing in the crisp air through his open window. He got to the turn off for the preserve and drove the long dirt road until he got to a cluster of timber buildings and a gravelled lot, parking up and grabbing his day pack from the back seat. There were a couple of forestry vehicles but the office was still closed when Stiles got to the door and he huffed and looked around. 

The clearing that Shadow met Derek’s suitors in was a good hour’s hike away and so he started walking, following the trail marked on the map he’d downloaded onto his phone the night before. Twigs crunched underfoot and he fell into a regular step, reminded of going hiking with his parents when he was younger. Claudia’s favourite place was the national parks that ran the back of California and he had many happy memories of playing among the redwoods while Noah took pictures. His parents still went every year, sending him the most ridiculous pictures of them larking about. 

He hadn’t realised what good time he’d made until he got to a wide clearing, a massive fallen log lying diagonally across the bare earth. Stiles checked his map and knew that this was the clearing. It made him shiver a little, knowing that somewhere there was a pack of wolves running around, but they were described as being non-aggressive and so he took the opportunity to inspect the area. One end of the log was scratched and Stiles surmised that was where Shadow sat. he ran his hand over a set of claw marks and then moved to the other end, sitting down and blinking into the sun. He was basking happily in the sunshine, growing steadily stronger, when he heard the soft thump of something jumping up onto the log. 

Stiles froze. He cracked one eye open and then nearly flailed right off the log when he saw the huge black wolf standing on the other end. It was far larger than he’d expected it to be and Stiles inhaled sharply and then sat there with his mouth open, taking in the magnificent animal in front of him. 

Shadow tilted his head, blinking warm gold eyes at him. He sat down on his haunches and chuffed once, as if asking Stiles what the hell he was doing there, especially out of visiting hours. It was then he saw that Shadow had the key around his neck, half hidden in his dense fur. He stared at it. It didn’t look out of the ordinary, just a regular old key on a length of stainless steel chain but the fact that Shadow was wearing it when they were so far away from the designated courting hour gave Stiles pause. 

‘Hi. Nice place you’ve got here.’ he said and then rolled his eyes at himself. After all it wasn’t like Shadow could understand him. 

To his surprise, Shadow actually looked like he was judging him for the comment and quite harshly as well. He snorted and his lip curled to bare a very large fang. 

‘Fine.’ Stiles was affronted. ‘Just trying to make some conversation here, buddy. 

Shadow yawned, blatantly putting all his teeth on display before rubbing his muzzle along his foreleg. It was such a doglike action that Stiles found himself smiling widely at it. He tried to hold it in but then it just got worse. He was always the kid that got into trouble for laughing uncontrollably in class and this was so much worse because there was an apex predator three fucking feet from him, but he was damned if he could stop himself. The stifled noise turned into a choked off laugh and then exploded in a series of guffaws that had the birds flying off above them. 

He chanced a look and the expression of sheer affronted horror on Shadow’s face (and who the hell knew that wolves could even have expressions like that) was too much and Stiles went full on nuclear until there were tears of merriment pouring down his face. 

‘Dude.’ he sniggered, clutching at his sides and waving a finger at Shadow. ‘Your face.’ 

Shadow growled low and then barked so loudly that Stiles meeped and fell over backwards, legs going everywhere as he hit the dirt. At least it wasn’t too hard even if he felt a bit winded. 

He looked up and saw that Shadow was standing peering over the edge of the log at him. The key was dangling right over Stiles’ almost begging to be grabbed. They both seemed to realise this at the same time and Stiles could have sworn that Shadow looked panicked for a second. He sighed happily and lay back in the dirt and smiled at the wolf. 

‘It’s okay, big guy.’ he said. ‘That’s not what I’m after. Me, I’m a big believer in consenting adults agreeing to being mated. Oh, and a spark. Got to have that. My parents had that, said they knew it was going to be big the moment they scented each other, and there’s no way in hell I’d get mated without it so your key is very safe with me.’ 

Shadow blinked, seemingly in surprise, and then leaped gracefully right over Stiles head. He struggled into a sitting position just in time to see Shadow hesitate at the edge of the clearing, their eyes meeting before the wolf chuffed softly and then bolted into the trees. Stiles watched him go, finally getting up and brushing himself off before smiling. 

‘Hope you tell him that.’ he yelled. ‘All I want is a chance to talk to him.’ 

There was no reply and he sighed, shouldering his pack again and heading back towards where he’d come from. 

-  
Derek stood as still as a statue, ears pricked and listening to Stiles making his very loud and rather clumsy way back towards the preserve entrance. 

He’d hoped that the scent the alpha had given off the night before hadn’t been what he’d thought it was. It had been a long day and he’d been on edge because Kate was back in town and stress always messed with his senses, but here he was again. If anything, Stiles’ scent was even better, unhindered by travel smells and other people and blending harmoniously with the smells of the preserve, the smells of his pack’s territory. 

He’d meant to scare him off, tracking him the instant he’d heard him rambling along. Derek hadn’t been able to sleep very well, even with Peter curling up in bed with him for comfort. He’d left his uncle still shifted with his nose tucked under his tail, stopping briefly to turn human and grab the key because he never went anywhere without it, and then Derek had run and run until he’d make a circuit of the preserve’s northern border and ended up near his place of work. The waft of bright citrus and sparky ozone had hit him like a sledgehammer and Derek had been literally led by his nose, tracking the alpha until he reached the clearing and sat down. He’d looked and smelled so content there, his beautiful, pale face with its chocolate moles that looked positively lickable to Derek turned into the sun like a lizard on a rock, that he’d just wanted to get a closer look. Surely there could be no harm in that.

Then Stiles had opened his one eye and seen him and Derek had nearly turned tail and fled. He would have, but the light had hit Stiles’ eyes at just the right angle and turned them liquid amber and he’d been completely enchanted, enough so that he’d stayed and let the alpha ramble at him. He was so animated, hands moving like birds taking flight as he talked. Derek was reserved and phlegmatic, not given to displays of extreme energy or emotion unless it was sass or sarcasm, and he watched Stiles’ hands weave through the air until he’d actually listened to what he was saying and couldn’t stop the snort from coming out. 

Stiles’ reaction to his dominance display had been completely unexpected too. Most humans, be they alphas or no, were terrified when he showed them his fangs. Stiles, on the other hand, had started giggling like a small child trying very unsuccessfully to keep it in until he was nearly choking on his own damn laughter. It had had a most unexpected effect on Derek and he’d found himself wanting to shift to laugh along with him, his stomach twisting up with butterflies that lurched around like they were drunk. 

That hadn’t happened since Paige. 

It had startled Derek so badly he’d barked and Stiles had gone tumbling off the log, making a very undignified sound when he hit the ground and Derek had been mortified. He’d run along the log until he could look out and check Stiles was alright, putting himself in a truly vulnerable position without even thinking. They’d both seen the key at the same time and Derek had frozen, completely expecting Stiles to reach up and snatch it from around his neck. The fact that he hadn’t had been probably the biggest surprise of Derek’s year.

Instead, Stiles had settled back down in the dirt, hands laced over his stomach as he met Derek’s eyes and told him that he wasn’t the kind of alpha who wanted to do anything without consent. That he was waiting for a spark. That the key, and by extension Derek even if Stiles didn’t know that, was safe with him.That was all it had taken for Derek’s self-imposed walls to crack. It had frightened him so badly that he’d run away and Stiles had let him go. Said that all he wanted was a chance to talk to him. 

The scariest thing was that for the first time ever since Paige had died, Derek found himself wanting to listen. 

-

Chris Argent paced while Kate lounged on the couch at the side of his hotel room. 

‘You need to calm down.’ she said, her voice like ice. ‘You’re freaking me out.’

‘This is wrong, Kate.’ Chris muttered. ‘You’re just so twisted up in your head that you’re ignoring the fact that what we are about to do is illegal. That you’re blackmailing me into helping you commit a crime.’ 

‘Oh cry me a river, Chris.’ Kate’s smile was sharp. ‘You can’t murder animals.’

‘We’ll still be tried if we get caught.’ Chris snapped. ‘This is insane!’

‘We won’t.’ Kate assured him. ‘I’m a professional and you’ll be helping me. And once we’re done with the dogs, you can breathe easy. After all, we wouldn’t want it to get out about you and Peter Hale now would we? I’m betting that Victoria would love to know all about your illegitimate whelp that you fathered while you were supposed to be courting her. She’d divorce you in a heartbeat and then all her lovely money that’s keeping us afloat and Allison in college would disappear. Not to mention the scandal or how disappointed your daughter would be in you. This estrangement between you is getting worse everyday. It would be a pity if she were to come over to our side completely.’ 

Chris gave her a scathing look, but he knew his anger was impotent. He deflated and sat down heavily on the bed. 

‘You promised you’d leave her out of this. I give you what you want, do this one last thing and you and Gerard are out of our lives for good.’ he said, his voice flat. ‘We need to be fast though. You’ve worn your welcome more than thin in this town.’ He eyed her angrily. ‘For someone that thinks werewolves are subhuman, you’re pretty obsessed with mating one.

‘Oh that’s the easy part, big brother.’ Kate purred. ‘I have it all figured out. I make Derek Hale my bitch just long enough to invoke my alpha rights, get my hands on the preserve when he’s the sole survivor of his illustrious family and then he’s going to be my little pet. Think of all the research he’ll be able to help us with.’

Chris went white. He knew what research Kate was referring to. 

‘He’ll never mate with you willingly.’ he replied, feeling utterly sick to his stomach. ‘He’s told you that much already.’

‘See that’s the difference between you and me.’ Kate smiled. ‘I don’t need him to be willing.’

-

Derek got back to the cabin, shaking out his fur as he rose to two legs and shifted back into human form. Inside he found Peter making breakfast, and went to peer over his shoulder and try to snaffle a piece of bacon. 

‘Manners.’ Peter admonished but he let Derek pilfer a couple of pieces and then sighed. His shoulders were heavy with tension and Derek whined softly and rubbed his face against Peter’s shoulder. 

‘You going to tell me what’s bothering you?’ he asked and Peter growled. 

‘Last night.’ he replied. ‘When Boyd said that Kate had brought her brother here. It brought back some bad memories.’ 

Derek waited, knowing that Peter would come out with it in his own time. Eventually his uncle turned off the stove and turned to face him, his blue eyes filled with an immeasurable sadness. 

‘He’s Jackson’s father.’ he said and Derek nearly fell over in surprise. That had been the last thing he’d expected. 

Everyone in the pack knew how Peter had met his mate at college, only to lose him when he’d left because of family pressure. What nobody had been expecting was for Peter to come home from college with a little added extra. Jackson had put in an appearance six months later, accelerated werewolf gestation making things a little easier to fit into summer break, but times being what they were then before Talia had gone into politics and started making ground in omega rights, being an unmated pregnant omega would have tanked her and Peter’s careers and so they’d given Jackson over to a childless couple - the Whittemores. They had been good parents, if a little overindulgent, and Jackson had grown up getting everything he needed until he’d shifted when he was sixteen and they’d had to deal with a kanima situation. After that, once Danny had brought him back by confessing his undying devotion, Jackson had learned about his true heritage although Peter had never ever told anyone who the real father was. 

‘Holy shit.’ he said and Peter raised an eyebrow at him. 

‘Quite.’ he replied. ‘You can’t tell anyone.’ 

‘I won’t.’ Derek’s head was still swimming with the revelation. ‘Jesus, what are you going to do?’

‘I have no fucking idea.’ Peter sat down opposite him, looking morose. ‘This is quite frankly the worst situation I could have ever imagined.’ He stopped them and looked at Derek, his nose twitching. ‘Were you in the preserve?’

‘Um.’ Derek floundered for a second before he gave up and nodded. ‘I went for a run.’

‘And?’ Peter pressed. ‘Come on, you look about as guilty as you did that time your mom caught you jerking off in the shed to that Babs Bunny furry porn you got off the internet.’

‘Christ.’ Derek muttered, going bright red. ‘Am I never going to live that down?’

‘Not as long as I’m alive to remind you.’ Peter said. ‘I told you my dirty little secret, so out with it.’

‘Stiles was at the clearing, nosing around. He smells good.’ Derek blurted out and then whined. ‘He smells like…’

‘Mate.’ Peter finished for him, the sadness coming out in a rueful smile. ‘Wolves aren’t meant to be alone, Derek. We’re not built for that. I never say it, but leaving my mate has had an effect on me. It’s made me more unstable, made it easier to lose control. Half the reason I isolate myself is because of that.’

‘No.’ Derek shook his head. ‘You’d never hurt us.’

‘It took everything in me not to rip Kate’s throat out after I found out who she really was and what she was trying to do to you.’ Peter said, eyes glowing gold in anger. I hate Chris for leaving, for choosing them over me and our cub. I often wonder if I’d told him I was pregnant, he might have changed his mind. I never got the chance and I’ve paid for that mistake. If this boy could be your second chance at happiness, I’m going to make damn sure you take it.’ 

Derek got up and went to him and Peter returned the tight hug Derek wrapped him up in. 

‘This morning I got careless.’ he said into Peter’s shoulder. ‘Stiles had the perfect opportunity to take the key and instead he said that he would never force a mating with an omega unless it was consensual. Then he smiled at me and told me I was safe with him.’

‘Did you believe him?’ Peter pulled back and looked at him seriously. 

‘I did.’ Derek replied. ‘I do.’

‘Then you’re going to get showered and dressed and not take your blockers. We’re going to call Laura and get her to put together a list of questions like she said she would, get our asses over to the inn and give you a chance to tell him your story. Then you’re going to spend the next week getting to know him.’

‘I don’t know if I’m ready for that.’ Derek said. ‘You know I don’t do well with people.’

Peter looked thoughtful. 

‘How was he with you in full shift?’ he asked and Derek smiled in memory of Stiles’ complete lack of fear. 

‘Like he wasn’t bothered by it all. It certainly didn’t stop him running off at the mouth.’ he said and Peter grinned. 

‘Then let him talk to you like that.’ he suggested. ‘He can talk to Shadow and you’ll feel safe enough to let him. Then you can return the favour by stretching out this exclusive interview for the next seven days by which time, you’ll have a feel for this alpha.’ His eyes twinkled. ‘He might even set off your heat, which will make the decision that much easier.’ 

Derek went red. He hadn’t had a heat since Paige, and even then they’d never fully consummated their mating bond because they were still too young. That didn’t mean Derek didn’t have vivid memories of their play-mating sessions and how it had felt to be under her, her teeth set gently into the back of his neck. The very thought of having that with Stiles, who smelled so good and whose heart beat so earnestly as he told Derek the truth, made him feel more than a little aroused. 

‘Oh dear me, nephew.’ Peter pushed him away, nose wrinkled. ‘May I suggest you take care of that in the shower. The last thing we need is to send you into a town full of marauding alphas smelling like an open invitation.’ 

Derek growled at him stomping off to go shower. Sometimes being a werewolf was a pain in the ass. That thought unfortunately morphed into imaginings of what it would feel like to have a different pain in his ass, courtesy of a certain alpha, and Derek had to jog to the bathroom, cursing his lack of control and inopportune erections.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So a little explanation of my take on A/B/O dynamics. 
> 
> Alphas can impregnate but not be impregnated. Alpha/alpha matings are unusual and still considered by traditionalists as extremely undesirable. The same is true for omega/omega relationships. Omegas can be impregnated but not impregnate. Betas can bear children from an alpha or another beta or parent children on another beta or omega. Heats in omegas are triggered by a compatible alpha, although they can also be triggered by hormonal supplements. Betas do not have heats or knots. Alphas will only have a rut and knot when triggered by an omega in heat. Teenage pairs are allowed to playmate until they turn eighteen and can officially mate. Mating is usually done after a period of courtship and the bond is sealed with a mating bite.


	5. Well, Hello There

Stiles got back to a hive of activity. The bar was the centre of attention with Scott already setting up as Erica and Danny brought out dishes from the kitchen and set them down for him to take pictures of. They all looked at him and then Erica grinned.

‘You’re smiling.’ she pointed out, sounding smug. ‘You’ve been in the preserve.’

‘How the hell did you know that?’ Stiles asked, coming over to inspect the set up Scott had going. Erica just gave him a grin and tapped the side of her nose before disappearing into the kitchen once more. Danny chuckled and started arranging the dishes in formation.

‘You’ve got leaf litter in your hair.’ he pointed out and Stiles went pink and dusted himself off.

‘I kind of fell off the log.’ he confessed. ‘Shadow got the drop on me.’

‘He was there?’ Danny’s eyebrows went up. ‘He’s not normally there in the morning.’

‘Yeah, I thought that was a bit odd.’ Stiles replied. ‘He even had the key.’

‘Really?’ Now Scott was looking interested. ‘And you didn’t try and get it?’

‘Dude.’ Stiles made a face. ‘That’s not my style. I did kind of make an idiot of myself though but at least Shadow can’t talk so Derek will never find out.’ He frowned when Danny made a choking noise that sounded suspiciously like laughter. ‘You okay?’

‘Sure.’ Danny cleared his throat rather aggressively. ‘So what exactly did Shadow do?’

‘He sat on his end of the log and I sat on mine, at least until I fell off.’ Stiles replied. ‘Then I told him to tell Derek that I just wanted to talk.’

‘Oh my God.’ Danny looked like he was torn between amusement and horror. He glanced towards the kitchen and Stiles was momentarily bemused by what he was listening for. He couldn’t hear anything.

‘So.’ Scott clapped a hand on Stiles’ shoulder. ‘How do we want to do this?’

Stiles looked at the array of breakfast dishes and his professional mind took over and for the next three hours all he was concerned with was the food, Scott’s shots and asking Erica and Boyd, now out of the kitchen and looking smug for some reason they weren’t elaborating on, for a rundown on their menus.

It was a good distraction.

-

Derek was nervous. He sat in the passenger seat of Peter’s rather flashy silver Mercedes, knee jiggling. Peter gave him a sidelong look and growled softly.

‘Stop it.’ he ordered. ‘You’re starting to freak me out.’

Derek huffed and rubbed sweaty palms on his thighs. He’d tried to go for casual and definitely not trying too hard, dressed in a faded pair of jeans and a plain white t-shirt under his favourite thick cardigan knitted in mottled blue wool. He had the key underneath his shirt, the metal warmed by his skin. Wolves ran hot and the lack of blockers combined with his nerves meant Derek was sweating more than normal. He could smell himself and was more than a little shocked at how strong his own scent was. He used the blockers whenever he had to go into town, knowing that it would frustrate any alphas that wanted to court him. Nobody that had come to Beacon had actually ever gotten a real chance to scent him but now Derek was willingly going to meet one in all his natural glory.

‘You really like him.’ Peter said and he startled a little.

‘Is it that obvious?’ he asked and Peter smiled.

‘You were never this nervous around Paige.’ he replied. ‘And you never smelled this receptive either. Not even when you two were play mating.’

Derek drew in a deep breath. As the only other omega in the family while Derek was growing up, Peter understood better than anyone else what this was like. He had been Derek’s confidant when he was younger, explaining how his cycles worked and what it meant being an omega wolf. His father James was a beta to Talia’s alpha, which was why they’d both left Derek’s sex education to Peter for the most part.

‘What if it happens?’ he asked. ‘If I go into heat because of him?’

‘Then you accept that you’re compatible and give him a chance.’ Peter replied. ‘A real chance.’

Derek blew out a deep breath and gave him a grateful smile.

‘Thank you for coming with me.’ he said. ‘I know that the thought of maybe seeing Chris must be unsettling.’

‘It’s not like I’ve been crying over him for the past twenty-three years, Derek.’ Peter said, but his heart blipped just the tiniest bit and that made Derek feel terribly sad on his behalf.

His phone chimed and he checked it.

‘Laura says that Mom and Dad just got back.’ he said. ‘She’s going to fill them in on the plan.’ They’d discussed the changes with her before they left and she’d agreed that meeting on neutral ground at the inn was a good idea to set up the interviews. ‘Jackson wanted to see Danny so she’s sent him over with the list of questions for the first meeting.’

‘Good.’ Peter nodded approvingly. ‘That will give me a chance to talk to him as well.’

‘You’re going to tell him?’ Derek asked and Peter sighed heavily and nodded.

‘I’m taking this as a sign.’ he replied. ‘Secrets don’t do anybody any good.’

-

Chris looked out the window of his hotel room. Behind him, Allison was pacing in much the same way he had that morning.

‘I can’t believe she’s doing this.’ She sounded utterly furious and Chris couldn’t bring himself to look at her. He was so deeply ashamed of his part in his father’s scheme so long ago, and knowing what had resulted from it had only made it worse. It was no coincidence that Chris had ended up at the same college as Peter Hale. Gerard had carefully engineered it. At first, it had simply been so Chris could spy for him. The Argents had known about werewolves for centuries, even if the general public was still blissfully unaware. The Hales thought they had hidden themselves and their true natures very well and Gerard had it in for them. He hated all werewolves but he hated the Hales with a twisted passion that had always scared Chris.

Chris had arrived at college, brainwashed and verging on zealotry. He’d been so convinced of his desire to carry out his father’s mission that when he’d first encountered the rakish young man with brilliant blue eyes and a smile that made his knees weak, Chris had thought he was losing his mind. He even entertained the idea that Peter had somehow bewitched him because he’d never scented anyone who’s smelled so perfect before. Peter, in his charming, slightly amoral way, had chased him relentlessly until Chris had had no choice but to fall into bed with him.

The irony that someone he was supposed to hate turned out to be a most perfectly compatible mate for him was cruel beyond imagining. They’d had two blissful semester together and then Chris had to go home and report back. He’d tried to hide it but he’d been weak and he’d caved under his father’s interrogation and Gerard had been so incandescent with rage that he’d sent Chris to France to marry the daughter of a close ally and that had been that. Victoria had been intelligent and striking and she’d made no attempt to get him to fall in love with her and so Chris had done his duty and given her a child and then retreated from her bed. He knew she’d taken other lovers, always the soul of discretion, but he’d only wanted one person.

Allison had made some of the grief bearable and Chris had thrown himself into hunting. That was until Allison was ten years old and Gerard started hinting that it was time to start training her and that had been Chris’ breaking point. He’d abandoned his mate, a man he’d loved with a passion that nothing in his life had ever replaced, and he knew he couldn’t do it. So he’d broken with them. Victoria had been oddly supportive, going with him and keeping Allison shielded from all of it. Chris had left his family behind but she’d had enough money for them to start again and to keep them going. She’d never asked him what had brought him to her bed, but Victoria was of hunter stock and Chris knew that she’d never brook him having fallen in love with a wolf.

That had been until three months before and Kate had arrived on their doorstep with a twisted smile and an even more twisted plan to get rid of the Hales once and for all. She’d been clever, waiting until Victoria was away in France visiting her family before she’d approached him. Chris could still remember the brown folder. It had looked so innocuous until he’d opened it and seen confirmation that the decision to obey Gerard and leave Peter had been the worst decision of his life.

Peter had never told him he was pregnant. Chris had had no idea and now there was a young man walking around Beacon Hills with his ice blue eyes and blond hair and Peter’s dimpled chin and compact frame. The records showed an adoption by a family called Whittemore. They’d named him Jackson and Chris wanted to cry over the sheer injustice of it all. He had a son and he’d never even known it until his psychopathic sister had tried to use it as leverage to make him help her murder the entire alpha pack, apart from Derek Hale who she wanted to take home with her and turn into something worse than a slave. At that point things could have gone bad. Chris could have caved, could have done what she asked to protect himself. But then he’d thought about how he’d given everything up to protect his daughter and knew that his son deserved no less.

So he’d told Allison. He’d expected recriminations, anger and rejection. What he got was an ally. They’d raised her right and her own moral compass was so much better than his own. That and her own burgeoning career in criminal law had found her coming up with a plan and with any luck, Kate wouldn’t see a thing coming.

‘We have to play it cool.’ he said. ‘Neither of us can give her any reason to question us. Thankfully, she’s arrogant enough to believe that she’s got me over a barrel so I’ll do exactly what she wants.’

‘I hate her.’ Allison muttered. ‘What she’s doing is vile.’

It turned out that confessing all the shitty things his family had done had been extremely cathartic and just the thing to firmly cement Allison’s hatred of her estranged family. Chris was so very glad he’d underestimated her protective streak. Now they just had to set the trap and wait for Kate to blunder into it.

He looked back out the window and saw a silver Mercedes pull up outside the inn. A shiver ran down his spine when he saw the driver get out. It had been twenty-three years but Peter was still so recognisable and Chris felt his heart ache as he watched the man he still loved so terribly walk towards the inn, a taller darker young man in tow.

‘Guess it’s time to repent my sins.’ he muttered and Allison came to stand next to him.

‘You can do this.’ she said and Chris hoped like hell she was right.

-

Stiles thought at first that he was smelling something extra good that Boyd was cooking up in the kitchen. It smelled heavenly, but then he started to parse out individual strands. There was earthy musk and a deep woody strain that was bitter at first before mellowing out. It reminded him of whiskey and wood smoke and he inhaled deeply enough that it went straight to his hindbrain and before he knew what he was doing, Stiles was bolting out the bar and straight into reception where he skidded to a stop and stared with his mouth hanging open.

Oh. _Oh_. So that’s what the scent was. His first semi-coherent thought was that if Derek smelled that good now, he’d probably blow every olfactory receptor in Stiles’ nose once he was sweat soaked and slick. The second was an startling realisation that Derek was here, especially after they had gotten off to a terrible start.

‘Dude.’ He breathed in reverently. ‘Not to come off like a total creep, but you are the best thing I have ever smelled in my entire life.’ He licked his lips, his heart going into overdrive when a sharp honeyed note joined the rest of Derek’s scent and his perfectly adorable ears went red. He ducked his head, green eyes flicking up in a way that was positively flirtatious and it was a world away from the snarling omega from the previous evening.

Stiles was in so much fucking trouble. He dug his nails into his palm, marinating in Derek’s luscious scent and getting hard even as he was standing there, unable to look away. Derek was staring right back, defiance and what looked like downright lust in his eyes and Stiles was so close to just going over and sticking his tongue down his throat.

‘Oh geez.’ The sound of a woman’s voice cut through Stiles’ haze and someone got in his way. ‘Hey, snap out of it!’ Slender fingers with the nails painted scarlet snapped right in his face and then Stiles heard what sounded like growling behind the woman and he managed to focus in enough to see red curls surrounding an elfin face and a pair of sharp green eyes. It took him a while to register that they were the wrong shade of green, forest leaves and not the light sea foam colour he wanted and he tried to get past her but she grabbed him by the arm and pinched really hard in the soft skin just by his arm pit and Stiles’ yelped, the pain doing enough to shock himself back into himself.

‘Lydia?’ He blinked and then saw that the entire lobby was crowded. Derek was being held back by Boyd, Danny and a handsome older man that bore enough resemblance to him to probably be related.

‘Go.’ The man barked at him. ‘Get him downstairs now!’

Derek whined like a dog and his eyes did the same odd flash thing Erica’s had done the night before as they dragged him off into the bar. That was when Stiles became aware of the strong arms locked around him and looked back over his shoulder to see the crooked line of Scott’s jaw.

‘Damn, dude.’ He was panting with exertion. ‘You’re pretty damn strong when you set your mind to it.’

‘What? I don’t know what’s going on?’ Stiles felt like he was underwater, with everything starting to get fuzzy around the edges,. His words coming out slurred.

‘What’s happening is that you’re this close to going into a rut.’ Lydia said crisply. She slapped him a couple of times and he managed to lock onto her. ‘That’s it, look at me. We’re going out to get some air.’

‘When did you get here?’ Stiles let them manhandle him towards the door.

‘Literally ten minutes ago.’ She arched a coppery brow at him. ‘And I found you and the super hot omega in there eye-fucking in the lobby.’

‘That’s Derek.’ Stiles twisted, trying to get loose and go back inside. ‘He’s my omega.’

‘Whoa there, buddy.’ Scott was grinning. ‘Yeah, maybe you need to calm down. You two haven’t even had an actual conversation so maybe save the claiming talk for later.’

‘But he smells so perfect.’ Stiles said dreamily. ‘And he’s wearing that really soft sweater and he’s so fucking beautiful he makes my teeth ache.’

‘Oh my God.’ Lydia was exasperated. ‘He’s rut-drunk. This is ridiculous. I let you two out of my sight for a day and this is what happens? Also, that man in there was Peter Hale! I didn’t even get a chance to introduce myself!’

They all jumped as a sleek black Porsche pulled into the lot and stopped bare inches from them. A very good looking young man with cheekbones that could be used to shave parmesan got out. He got an approving look from Lydia, who immediately went to intercept him.

‘You’re Jackson Whittemore.’ she said and he stopped and gave her an equally approving once over.

‘That’s Prada.’ he said, eyeing her abstract print silk tea dress. ‘It’s the summer collection from last year.’

‘Very good.’ Lydia purred. ‘You sound like someone with taste and appear to be in possession of your faculties.’ She held out her hand. ‘I’m Lydia Martin. My friends here are in something of a snafu, mostly because the son of your employer sent that asshole into rut.’ She jabbed a finger at Stiles. ‘And now he’s drooling and behaving like a knothead.’

Stiles winced and attempted to wipe it away. Lydia was right, he was like mastiff after a long walk.

‘Impossible.’ Jackson snorted. ‘Derek never goes out in public without using blockers.’

‘Yeah about that.’ They all turned to see Danny on the front step. He came down and Jackson smirked and put an arm around his waist, kissing his mate in a way that was a little too intimate for public consumption.

‘What the hell is going on, Danny?’ he asked and Danny gave him a wicked grin.

‘Derek decided it would be a good idea to come into town and see Stiles without his blockers.’ He looked over, dark eyes twinkling. ‘You must have made one hell of an impression.’

‘How though?’ Stiles flailed. His head was finally clearing with all the fresh air. ‘We haven’t actually even spoken.’

‘That’s what I said.’ Scott was rubbing Stiles’ shoulders. It reminded him of Finstock when he was trying to motivate the troops. He’d been a high school coach before he’d become a magazine editor via an unlikely and outlandish series of events and still insisted they call him Coach. Or Cupcake, which was even worse. Stiles realised that he was starting to ramble mentally and tried to pull himself together.

‘I want him.’ It was the only thing he could think of to say.

‘Well, I want to have an uninterrupted weekend with Peter Hale talking about string theory and instead, I’ve got to babysit you.’ Lydia hissed. She looked at Jackson.

‘Talia sent me here to oversee their interview.’ He took a piece of paper out of his suit jacket. ‘I have the questions here, but it looks like neither of them are capable right now. What are they doing with Derek?’ This was to Danny, who shrugged.

‘Boyd’s getting him in the van and taking him back to the house.’ he replied. ‘The interview is going to have to wait.’

‘Jesus.’ Jackson rolled his eyes. ‘Talia’s going to love this.’

-

‘So that was a colossally bad idea.’ Erica giggled. She was busy sitting on Derek’s legs, trying to hold him down while he wriggled, growling up a storm. Boyd was in front, tearing out the back lot of the inn and racing down the road at speed.

‘Jesus Christ.’ Peter was behind him, sitting on the floor of the van and holding onto Derek for dear life. ‘Okay, I may have underestimated what ten years of enforced abstinence would do to his mating instincts.’ He yelped as Derek sank his fangs into his forearm. ‘This is worse than when he went through puberty!’

‘Give him a sedative.’ Boyd chuckled from the front and Erica growled at him.

Derek let go long enough to bare his fangs at her.

‘Let me go!’ he growled. ‘I need to get back to him.’

‘No way.’ Peter tightened his grip. ‘While I am delighted that you’ve managed to show an interest in someone, we really need to get some distance between you both. You can sleep this off and then we’ll make some decisions.’

Derek disliked that idea intensely so he did what he thought was best and bit him again. Peter gritted his teeth and snarled at Erica.

‘I’m going to kill him.’ he snarled and she giggled again.

‘Look at it this way.’ she replied. ‘If this works out, you’ll never have to put up with alphas crawling all over the town ever again.’

Derek grinned around the mouthful of Peter’s arm he had his fangs in and Peter huffed.

‘So not worth it.’ he muttered.


	6. And The Chase Is On

‘He what?’ Talia looked more surprised than Derek had ever seen her and he whined and rubbed his head against her knee while she carded her fingers through his hair. It turned out that nearly going into heat made him a needy, tactile bastard and his alpha’s presence was soothing. 

‘This is your fault.’ Peter snorted, looking at a seething Laura. ‘You suggested the interview.’

‘Oh no.’ She narrowed her eyes at him. ‘You’re the one that took him to the inn, and you’re the one who told him to not take the blockers.’ 

‘Mom.’ Derek sighed and blinked up at Talia. 'Make them shut up. They're hurting my ears.' 

He might still have been a little out of it. All his prior experience of heat was limited, and Derek could never remember ever feeling like this. He’d already abandoned his cardigan, boots and socks, wet patches under his arms and down his back. The thick plush carpet was perfect for curling his toes into so he did. 

‘Here.’ James came into Talia’s study, holding a glass of ice water. Derek held out his hands like a child, taking it and downing it greedily. His father watched with an indulgent smile and then accepted the empty glass back. ‘Better?’

‘A little.’ Derek said. He sighed and went back to leaning against Talia. ‘I feel funny.’

‘Well, you sound like an idiot.’ Laura snorted and Talia shushed her. 

‘It’s normal from what I hear.’ She glanced at Peter and he nodded. ‘But I’ve called Dr Deaton and he’s on his way.’

‘Okay.’ Derek thought about wide amber eyes, the way Stiles had flushed when he caught scent of him. He smiled goofily and hummed happily when Talia’s fingers found a really good bit at the back of his head, scratching gently through his hair. If he’d been in wolf form, his tail would have probably been beating a lazy tattoo against the carpet. 

‘This Stiles Stilinski.’ he hears Talia say to Laura and Peter. ‘Who is he?’

‘He’s a writer for a magazine called Modern Dynamic.’ Laura said. ‘They do a little bit of everything lifestyle - some travel, some food and some articles of current issues in dynamics. By all accounts, he’s a decent journalist. He’s solvent, doesn’t have any vices and the son of Noah Stilinski. I know of him from the SFPD. He’s in the Special Victims Squad. Stiles’ mother is an English professor at UCSF, specialising in omega literature and she’s very well known for her own books on the subject of modern dynamics in the media. Still goes by her maiden name which is Claudia Gajos.’

‘Claudia Gajos?’ Talia sounds somewhat excited. ‘She’s got quite a lot of clout in California, if not the country. I’ve read her books. Do you know if Stiles shares her views?’

‘Very much so if his articles are anything to go by.’ Laura replied. ‘So that’s one less thing to worry about. I don’t think we’d have to worry about him treating Derek poorly.’

‘He could have taken the key.’ Derek’s eyes felt so heavy. ‘This morning. He didn’t. Said it would be my choice.’ He yawned hugely and Peter huffed. 

‘Once Deaton gets a look at him, I’m suggesting he goes back to the cabin.’ he said. ‘He’ll need someone to babysit.’

‘Well, Erica and Boyd have gone back to the inn and Isaac and Braeden are working.’ Talia said. ‘Cora won’t be back this weekend so that leaves you.’ She grinned at Laura and Laura made an affronted noise. 

‘Me?’ She wrinkled her nose. ‘I don’t want to have to smell my brother going into heat.’ 

‘Tough.’ Talia got up, gently disentangling Derek when he tried to hold onto her leg. ‘You’re partially responsible for this mess. In the meantime, your uncle and I are going to go have a conversation with Mr Stilinski and see what his intentions are.’

-

‘Are you okay?’ Lydia asked and Stiles raised his head from the pillow. They were in his room and he was feeling much calmer. Scott was in the armchair by the window tapping out messages to someone and Lydia was on the bed next to him, both of them watching him intently. 

‘I think so.’ He sat up and the light headed feeling from before was gone. ‘Yeah, I should be good to go.’ 

‘Cool.’ Scott said, nodding at his cell. ‘Isaac said that he got a call from Talia saying that Derek will not be seeing any alphas today so we can go get some pictures of the clearing.’ He’s got a little grin on his face and Stiles could read him like a book, even in a compromised state. 

‘Now isn’t that a coincidence.’ he said and Lydia looked at him quizzically. ‘Did Scotty tell you about the other gorgeous omega we met last night?’

‘No.’ Lydia glared at Scott. ‘He must have forgotten. Is everyone finding a goddamn mate around here? What about me?’

‘I thought all you wanted was to talk about string theory?’ Stiles sniped and it immediately regretted it when she thumped him with a pillow. He got up, muttering about friends who were more like violent offenders. 

Downstairs they found Erica back behind reception, She winked at Stiles as they got there. 

‘Nice to see you back and coherent, Casanova.’ she snickered. ‘’What the hell was that? I had to sit on Derek the whole way back to the the house.’

Stiles wasn’t sure whether he wanted to fall through the floor or fist pump in victory so he settled for a sheepish grin. 

‘What can I say?’ he quipped. ‘I’m irresistible.’ He shuffled awkwardly for a moment. ‘You had to sit on him?’

‘He wanted to jump out of a moving vehicle and run all the way back to you.’ This was from Boyd, coming into the lobby with an equally smug grin on his face. ‘Then again, I heard you kind of lost your mind over the way he smelled too, so it seems you’re both idiots.’ 

‘Dammit.’ Stiles went red, glaring at Scott and Lydia who were watching the exchange with unconcealed glee. ‘Have your fun now. I’m going out to get my damn story back on track.’ 

‘Have fun.’ Erica trilled and Stiles found himself hating her just a little. Lydia, on the other hand, looked like she wanted to make Erica her new best friend so he grabbed her arm and dragged her with before any more damage could be done. 

-

‘Hmmm.’ Deaton said and Derek gave him the most judgemental eyebrow configuration he could muster. 

‘Hmm what?’ He was starting to feel hot and sweaty again, and it was making him decidedly cranky. His claws and fangs were itching to come out and he was feeling a burning desire to hunt down every blanket, throw and soft furnishing in the house and make a nest. The thought of soft things against his newly oversensitive skin was bliss. And food. All the warm starchy cheese alden comfort foods Derek could think of. He vaguely wondered if he could convince Laura to make him mac and cheese when he finally managed to get home. 

‘You’re in definitely in pre-heat.’ Deaton said, resting the back of his hand against Derek’s forehead. ‘It’s a good thing they got you out when they did or it would have become full-blown in a matter of minutes.’ 

‘Great.’ Derek muttered. ‘So now what?’

‘You need to go home.’ Deaton replied. ‘You’re going to experience several symptoms - increased appetite, lethargy, heightened senses to the point of oversensitivity. If you stay away from Mr Stilinski, it will wear off in a matter of days and you can go back to normal.’

A few days ago, that would have been all Derek wanted. Now he wasn’t so sure.

‘And if I don’t?’ he asked, biting his lip. Deaton gave him a searching look. 

‘Then I can give you a contraceptive shot, if you like.’ he said. ‘And you can go after your alpha and let the heat take you.’ His dark eyes were warm and caring. ‘I’ve known you since you were born, Derek. You’ve always been an omega who knew his own mind. And if you want my opinion, you deserve to let the past go and find happiness. Nobody would begrudge you that.’

Derek gave him a grateful smile. It only took a minute to hold out his arm and Deaton’s eyes crinkled as he returned it. He went to his bag, coming back with a small brown bottle and a hypodermic. 

‘This is fast acting.’ he explained. ‘But I should warn you instead of letting the pre-heat abate, it may well exacerbate it.’

‘That’s okay.’ Derek replied. ‘I think I’m ready for that.’

-

Scott drove and Stiles winced as he grated the gears over the dirt road he’d driven just that morning. 

‘Take it easy.’ he grumbled. ‘Roscoe needs gentle handling.’

They got to the parking lot, fuller than it had been earlier and got out. There was an official looking vehicle parked next to the forestry ones and he wondered why the sheriff’s department were there. 

Scott got to the office first, holding open the door, and they filed in to see Isaac, now dressed in his khaki forestry uniform, talking to a tall young man. He was classically handsome and dressed similarly, the six pointed star on his shirt identifying his vocation and Stiles heard Lydia inhale sharply when she saw him. 

‘Hi.’ Isaac was smiling brilliantly at Scott. ‘You made it.’ He came around the desk, his whole face lit up. 

‘Yeah.’ Scott was looking equally smitten and Lydia gave Stiles a very confused glance. 

‘Oh yea.’ He waved a hand at them. ‘So Scott’s discovered that he may like dudes too.’

‘Stiles!’ Scott hissed and went red but it seemed to make little difference to Isaac. 

‘Oh.’ He gestured to the man behind him. ‘This is Jordan Parrish. He’s our new Sheriff. He just started last week.’ 

Stiles accepted the hand Jordan offered him but couldn’t help the notice that he was looking past to Lydia. He could smell the Sheriff was an alpha and he could also tell that Lydia had noticed that too. Her usually floral scent was going sweet around the edges. 

‘This is one of my best friends, Lydia Martin.’ he said and Jordan breezed right past him to her. Their eyes were locked and Scott and Isaac were watching open mouthed. 

‘Hi.’ Jordan said and Lydia smiled at him.

‘Hi.’ she replied. ‘Congratulations on your new position. I have to say, I do like a man in uniform.’ 

‘And what do you do?’ Jordan asked. It was as if they were the only two people in the room now and Stiles rolled his eyes. 

‘I’m a rather brilliant mathematician.’ Lydia purred. ‘I do hope you like intelligent omegas who like to upset social convention at every turn.’ 

‘Hell yeah.’ Jordan moved to offer her a chair, glancing back at Isaac. ‘If you want to go with our visitors, I’m happy to hold the fort for a while.’

‘Lydia?’ Stiles asked. ‘You want to stay here?’

‘Yes, I do.’ Lydia replied. ‘My heels aren’t made for hiking.’ She didn’t even look at him, too busy fluttering her eyelashes at Jordan. 

‘Alright then.’ Isaac was shrugging into his jacket. ‘Let’s go.’ 

-

Chris gritted his teeth and kept his mouth shut. Up ahead of him, Kate was making nice with Allison. It was nauseating to see how she was trying to play the cool aunt, especially knowing what really lay behind her smile. 

She’d insisted on taking them out to show them the town, expounding at length on Gerard’s plans to develop the crap out of it. Thankfully, Allison was much better at hiding her feelings than he was and she’d been acting her little heart out, pretending to be impressed and asking for all the details. It was a small consolation to know that once they were done with her, neither Kate nor Gerard would be getting their hands on Beacon Hills. 

They got to the inn and he opened the door for them, giving Allison a wan smile as she passed him. Kate was already inside when she completely stopped and Chris was confused until he picked up the distinct scent of omega. It had a familiar note to it and he immediately knew that it must be Derek’s scent, similar enough to the ghost of Peter’s that he carried with him. It was enough to make him feel an ache inside but it was having a completely different effect on Kate. 

She was looking around frantically, rushing to the bar entrance to peer inside before wheeling around and glaring at him. 

‘He’s off his blockers.’ She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. ‘Fuck. I need to have him.’ When she opened them again, they were glazed and the intensity in them was terrifying. ‘You two stay here and call me if he even so much as shows his face.’ 

That was all she said before tearing out the door like her ass was on fire and Chris shuddered at the thought of her getting to Derek. Seconds later her truck was pulling out, tyres squealing in her rush.

‘Allison…’ he started but she was already moving. 

‘I’m on it.’ she said and went out after Kate. He could trust her to be discreet. Allison may not have been a hunter, but Chris had trained her nonetheless. He waited until he could see their SUV driving past before he went to the reception desk and pounded on the small old fashioned bell. A minute later, Erica came back out. She was frowning and Chris held up his hands. 

‘I know you don’t know me and have no reason to trust me, judging by your reaction to us coming here.’ he said. ‘But Kate has just come in here and scented Derek and taken off. I really think that you need to let him know that she’s probably going after him.’ 

‘Fuck.’ Erica grabbed her phone. She started talking to whoever was on the other side, her voice shaking with anger. ‘Hi, it’s me. Yeah, look Kate got Derek’s scent and the crazy bitch is probably going to come beat down your door. He needs to get out of there asap.’

Chris should have felt offended at the term she used to describe his sister, but it wasn’t like it wasn’t the truth. He turned to make his own call, then froze when the door to the inn opened and he saw who was standing there. 

It was like crashing back through time and hitting a brick wall. Every single part of him seemed to come alive when the distinct smell of evergreen trees, paper and the sharp tang in ink hit him and made his body remember just what he’d walked away from. 

‘Peter.’ he breathed. ‘It’s you.’ 

He did not expect Peter to stride across the lobby and punch him in the mouth. The force behind it knocked Chris right on his ass and he found himself on his back, blinking up into Peter looking absolutely furious and completely breathtaking all at the same time. 

‘Yes, it is.’ He raised an eyebrow that had lost none of its sassiness. ‘Hello, Christopher. Fancy seeing you here after oh...twenty-three years?’

Chris sat up, wiping the blood from his split lip on his sleeve. 

‘Guess I deserved that.’ he said and then saw Talia Hale come to stand next to her brother. ‘Senator.’

‘Jesus fuck.’ Talia’s mouth was a flat unhappy line. ‘Seriously, Peter? Him?’

‘What can I say.’ Peter sighed, dragging a hand over his face. ‘I’m a sucker for leggy blonds.’ He crouched down so he was eye to eye with Chris. ‘Why are you here?’

‘I need to talk to you.’ Chris replied. ‘Seems there was one piece of very relevant information that you left out of our last conversation. Something about your condition.’ 

‘Fuck you, Chris.’ Peter said evenly, managing to hide his obvious shock. ‘You left. I don’t owe you a goddamn thing.’ 

‘Oh for God’s sake.’ Talia muttered. ‘We really don;t have time for this.’ She looked over at Erica, who was watching everything with wide eyes. ‘Where is Mr Stilinski?’

‘He’s gone to the preserve with Scott and his friend Lydia.’ Erica replied, still gawking at Peter and Chris. ‘Um, what the hell is going on?’

‘Long story.’ Peter got to his feet and held out a hand. Chris hesitated and then took it, a thrill going through when Peter pulled him effortlessly to his feet. He’d always had a thing for how strong his omega was. 

‘Thank you.’ he said. ‘And I mean it. I would really appreciate it if we could talk.’

Peter looked at Talia and she snorted and headed towards the bar. 

‘I’m going to get a drink.’ she announced. ‘I think I deserve one for all the shit I seem to be getting shoved in my face today.’

Peter watched his sister go and then raised an arch eyebrow at Chris. 

‘Looks like you’re in luck, handsome.’ he said, giving Chris that beautifully sharp smile that had captured his heart so easily. ‘Let’s go have a chat, shall we?’

-

The clearing was empty as it had been that morning but now Stiles could catch remnants of a scent that he could now identify as Derek’s. It made him wonder whether he’d been out there in the trees, listening to Stiles making an ass of himself in front of Shadow. 

Scott was busy getting shots of the clearing and the log, Isaac chattering away to him about the preserve. It was actually really sweet the way they were interacting and Stiles was starting to think that maybe he’d leave them to it, maybe tell Scott he needed to have dinner with Isaac later. 

‘He didn’t.’ Isaac was sniggering and Stiles realised that they were now talking about him. 

‘He did.’ Scott told him. ‘They were just standing there lost in each other’s eyes. I think if it had been a second longer, we’d have had trouble.’

‘Erica said it was pre-heat.’ Isaac was looking at Stiles, a thoughtful expression on his face. ‘Derek must really fucking like you.’

‘He likes him too.’ Scott’s smile was pure evil. ‘I’ve never seen Stiles act like such a knothead before.’

‘Hey!’ Stiles glared at him. ‘Careful or you’re walking back.’

He skirted around the clearing, ignoring their laughter, and then caught a glimpse of someone in the trees. 

‘Hello?’ he called and behind him Isaac stopped laughing, then moved past him at speed. 

‘Hey!’ His shout was a lot more forceful. ‘What are you doing here?’

The person in the trees came out of the shadows, and Stiles was surprised to see it was Allison Argent. He was even more surprised to see her moving with an assuredness that was belied by her short skirt and fashionable boots, and he definitely hadn’t expected to see her carrying what looked like a very dangerous weapon. 

‘Is that a crossbow?’ Scott squeaked behind him and Isaac’s hand was on his own sidearm. 

‘You’re not allowed to be carrying that here.’ His voice had dropped into a low growl. 

‘Hear me out.’ Allison held up one hand. ‘I know what you are and I’m not the enemy.’

Isaac’s growl intensified and yeah, Stiles was definitely not seeing things. His blue eyes were flickering an iridescent gold colour that was definitely not normal. 

‘You need to leave, Miss Argent.’ He was shaking with anger. ‘I’m giving you one minute to turn around and go back to your vehicle.’ 

‘Please, hear me out.’ Allison pleaded. ‘I know about werewolves. I know that you are one. I know about the pack. Kate is here to kill you all. She’s a hunter, and so are the rest of my family but I am not. I need your help to stop her.’ 

‘Werewolves?’ Stiles felt like he was going crazy and he looked between Isaac and Allison. ‘What the fuck is this?’

‘You have no right telling them this.’ Isaac jabbed a finger at her. 

‘You have to help me.’ Allison repeated. ‘She scented Derek at the inn and took off. I assumed she’d come here, but maybe she’s gone to the pack house. I’m assuming it’s Talia’s home that you use for that? Because she’ll be the pack alpha. Please believe me, Kate’s really dangerous, more than you can possibly know. I need to find her and stop her. You can track her right? You can help me find her.’

‘Holy shit!’ Scott yelled as he suddenly caught up. He looked at Isaac’s glowing eyes. ‘You’re a werewolf!’

‘Christ.’ Isaac slumped. ‘Talia’s going to kill me.’ he heaved a sigh and looked at Stiles. ‘You cannot under any circumstances talk about anything you’ve just seen, are we clear?’

In truth, Stiles was only interested in one thing, merrily compartmentalising everything else he’d just seen. 

‘What do you mean, Kate scented Derek.’ He glared at Allison. ‘He’s mine.’ 

‘Then I suggest you all help me find her.’ Allison snapped. ‘Because if what you said about him being in pre-heat is right, she won’t hesitate to take advantage of that.’ 

That was all Stiles needed to hear to get him running. He heard Isaac call after him but he was too far gone, his vision going red at the thought of Kate getting to Derek before him and claiming him for her own. 

He had no idea where he was going but Stiles was not going to let anything happen to Derek, not on his watch. He’d find him if it was the last thing he did. 

Back in the clearing Scott was aghast. 

‘Should we go after him?’ he asked and Isaac looked torn. He huffed and looked at Allison. 

‘How much head start does she have?’ he asked and Allison looked unhappy. 

‘Enough.’ she said. ‘Can you call Talia? Maybe she can look for her.’

‘Not from here.’ Isaac replied. ‘No reception. I’d have to get back to the office.’ His eyes flicked to Scott. ‘I couldn’t howl either. We’re too far out.’ 

‘Will he be alright?’ Scott asked. ‘I mean, he’s not thinking right.’

‘Once I’ve called Talia, we’ll come back and track him.’ Isaac said. ‘I can follow his scent.’ He shrugged sheepishly. ‘Werewolf nose.’

‘Okay then.’ Allison said firmly. ‘We go back, get the pack alerted and tell my dad. He’ll help you look for Kate and I’ll help you look for Stiles. It’s the least I can do.’ 

‘Deal.’ Isaac said. ‘Now let’s go. We don’t have a minute to waste.’


	7. Tag, You're It

Derek had never been so happy to see his home. He was bundled up in the back of Laura’s car, wrapped in the quilt from Talia’s bed so her scent could soothe him. It was one of the reasons she’d sent Laura with him, although his sister’s alpha scent wasn’t doing quite as good a job. What he really wanted was Stiles’ lightning and citrus, light and airy and cooling on his skin. 

‘And here we are.’ Laura put the car in park and killed the engine. ‘You go in, I’ll bring everything.’ She’d raided the kitchen and pantry before they’d left and Derek had done his own little supply run on Peter’s bathroom. His uncle was terribly organised in a way he wasn’t and he’d happily pilfered three unopened bottles of lube and some of the super expensive scent enhancing soap that Peter favoured. He’d catch hell for it later, but Derek didn’t much care at that moment. 

He stumbled out the car and towards his cabin. It had been built for his omega great grandmother to retreat to when she was having her heats and it was secure and safe. He unlocked the door and went inside, his bare feet sticking a little to the scarred floorboards. The main room was painted a soft grey, all the furniture was handed down from previous Hales and he settled onto the couch, wriggling into a comfortable position while he peered out from his quilt and watched Laura carry in the supplies. 

She huffed at him, her eyes flashing red. Derek gave her his most winning smile, knowing that her alpha instincts were making her take care of him. He considered it payback for everything she’d done in the name of family pranks. 

‘You could help you know.’ she grumbled, hauling three full packs of bottled water into the tiny kitchen at the back of the main room. 

‘No.’ Derek drew his feet up, tucking the corner of the quilt around them. ‘You’re a big strong alpha. I’m sure you’re doing fine.’ 

He hummed in contentment when she growled at him and went back out to the car. It took another five trips for her to get everything inside. Derek waited until she’d sat down before turning on the puppy eyes. They’d always been super effective in getting what he’d wanted.

‘Lo.’ He whined at her. ‘I want mac and cheese.’

Laura smacked herself in the forehead.

‘You couldn’t have told me that earlier? We could have made a detour to the diner to get you some.’ She was exasperated but Derek was persistent. 

‘But yours is better.’ he pouted. ‘You put bacon in it.’

‘Christ.’ Laura muttered. ‘Peter’s right. This is worse than when you went through puberty.’ She got up, stomping to the kitchen. 

‘And blondies!’ Derek yelled after her. ‘Make sure you put extra frosting on them!’

Laura’s head came around the kitchen door. It was clear she was gritting her teeth. 

‘Anything else, your highness?’ she asked and Derek smiled beatifically at her. 

‘Just my alpha.’ he replied, snuggling into the quilt. 

‘Yeah, well Mom’s on that.’ Laura growled and went back into the kitchen. 

-

Talia was so far beyond angry that she’d gone all the way around into a state of perfect calm. Peter had only ever seen her like that once before and that was when he’d told her that he was pregnant and that his alpha had abandoned him. 

‘Tally.’ He put a gentle hand on her shoulder, hoping like hell that the pheromones he was exuding could ease her back down. ‘You're choking him.’ 

Talia didn’t even flinch. If anything her grip on Chris’ throat tightened a little and his eyes bulged spectacularly where she had him pinned up against the wall, his feet dangling half a foot off the ground. 

Peter sighed. It looked like he’d have to pull out the big guns. He let his eyes shift and put all his omega power into his voice. 

‘Alpha.’ He said it softly for maximum effect. ‘Please put him down.’

Talia snarled. She was beta shifted, her eyes crimson and her fangs truly impressive. She finally relented and Chris slid to the floor, coughing frantically as his body tried to get as much oxygen into it as possible. 

‘Damn.’ Erica muttered. She and Boyd had closed off the bar so they could talk and were now standing there, both of them shifted as well in response to their alpha’s anger. ‘I’ve never seen her lose it like that.’

‘And with good reason.’ Chris wheezed. ‘I don’t blame you for being angry, Senator. If it was my family under threat, I would be the same.’ He got to his feet and stood tall, his face red and his throat already starting to purple but defiant and unafraid. ‘What I did was inexcusable. What my family has done for generations is criminal. I can’t apologise for it. I can only try to put things right.’

‘The only reason you’re still breathing is because I know Peter didn’t tell you about him being pregnant.’ Talia growled. ‘And also because, while you coming to help your sister murder us really isn’t a good look, I can appreciate someone who admits their mistakes and is willing to put things right.’ She glanced back at Peter. ‘Whatever goes on between you two is your business. I’ve never subscribed to the view that omegas are fragile creatures that need their hands held through every decision they make. Our alpha didn’t raise us like that, and I’ve done the same with my own cubs.’ 

Chris’s eyes flicked to Peter and then he nodded.

‘I’ve done the same with Allison.’ he said. ‘She knows that what the Argents stood for is not what she stands for. We protect those that can’t protect themselves.’

‘Well, that’s not entirely true.’ Tali’s fangs flashed in a quick smile. ‘But I’ll welcome the help.’ She held out her hand. ‘Truce?’

‘Truce.’ Chris said and shook it. ‘So you’ll help me catch her before she hurts anyone?’

‘We will.’ Talia promised. ‘But then we’re going after her with everything we can. I’m sure you know that Laura is one hell of a litigator.’

‘I do.’ Chris gave Peter a small smile. ‘She’s one of the reasons Allison went into criminal law.’

Peter met his eyes and returned the smile. He felt happier than he had in a very long time. Things may not be fixed, but this just might be a start. 

Of course, that was when the doors to the bar slammed open and Jackson came running in, looking equal parts frantic and furious. 

‘Nobody’s got their goddamn phone on!’ he roared. ‘Why the hell does nobody have their fucking phone on? Isaac called and said they’ve lost Stiles! Also, apparently Kate’s gone after Derek.’

He stopped and then gave them all a highly suspicious look, his eyes finally landing on Chris. 

‘What the hell is going on?’ he asked and Chris looked at Peter, his face all kinds of confused and hopeful and desperate. 

Peter looked at Talia, conveying the need for backup using his eyebrows. She replied in the negative, her own eyebrows doing a complicated dance to express just how done she was with everything.

‘You’re Jackson.’ Chris’ voice was rough with emotion and Peter rolled his eyes. 

‘Yes, he’s Jackson.’ he muttered. ‘Congratulations on your observational powers. Not like it’s hard to see the family resemblance.’

‘What?’ Jackson was now staring at Chris, his nose twitching as he caught his scent. ‘Peter? Why does he smell like me?’

Peter sighed and bit the bullet. 

‘Because he’s your father.’ he replied. 

-

Derek knew something was up by the way Laura went outside to take a phone call. He’d spent the past half hour happily nesting, dragging every comforter, blanket and pillow he owned into his bedroom and arranging them on the bed until he was satisfied while the cabin filled with delicious smells. Laura’s phone had gone off just as he was carefully arranging his bottles of purloined lube and his favourite dildos on the nightstand and now he was watching her pacing back and forwards from his window, her face going through a myriad of emotions before she hung up and came back inside. 

Derek bolted downstairs to find her checking the windows. Her scent was tart with worry and it immediately made him want to hide. 

‘What’s wrong?’ he asked and Laura growled, drawing the curtains. 

‘Kate caught your scent.’ she said. ‘Oh, and apparently the Argents are werewolf hunters. Her courting you is part of some complicated plot to get her hands on the preserve after she murders us all in our sleep! Not to mention, Chris fucking Argent is Jackson’s father!’ Her hands were waving around violently and Derek had to sit down because it was all too much. 

‘Holy shit.’ He drew a deep shuddering breath and then looked up. ‘So he told everyone?’

‘You knew?!’ Laura screeched. ‘Derek, this is huge! Especially the part about Kate coming after you!’

‘No, I heard that!’ Derek snapped. His head was starting to feel fuzzy. Obviously the symptoms were getting worse as Deaton had predicted. ‘She can’t come here. She doesn’t know where it is.’

‘That’s not the point.’ Laura growled. ‘She could still try and track you. She’s a hunter. They have their ways and Mom said that she’d taken off into the preserve. So now there’s two alphas on the verge of rut chasing around the forest and with your fucking luck they’ll actually stumble across you!’

That got Derek’s attention. He fixed Laura with a fierce glare. 

‘What do you mean two alphas?’ he growled and it was so threatening that she took a step back and then made a face.

‘That dippy alpha you’ve been flirting with.’ she retorted. ‘He was in the woods with Isaac and his photographer and they ran into Allison Argent. She was looking for her aunt. Mom said that her and Chris have been working with someone on the justice office to catch her in the act and get her and Gerard put away. You setting her off with your scent was not part of the plan and when Stiles heard Kate was after you, he went rut-nuts and sprinted off into the reserve.’

Derek said nothing, too stuck on the idea of Stiles running to his defence. He broke into a huge smile, which was quickly followed by the sickening realisation that Stiles was more than likely lost in the preserve with Kate. He knew about hunters, they all did, and the thought of what she might do to Stiles if he got in her way had him snarling and flashing his eyes, claws and fangs dropping.

‘Derek, calm the fuck down.’ Laura shifted, using her alpha voice. ‘This is no time to lose it.’

Derek bared his fangs at her and roared. It was loud enough to rattle the windows and she fell back, her face shocked. He’d never ever so openly defied her before and Derek took the valuable seconds it gave him to bolt. He was out the door and leaping off the porch, shifting in mid air, before Laura even managed to make a grab for him. As an alpha, she was stronger, but Derek was faster and he galloped through the trees, darting left and right to confuse her until her frantic howls grew faint in his ears. 

Stiles was somewhere out there in the preserve and he was going to find him before Kate did. 

-

‘Fuck.’ Stiles was lost. He’d been running for what felt like hours, his feet aching and his blood pounding through his veins as he tried desperately to follow any hint of Derek’s scent. He stopped, bracing his hands on his knees as he caught his breath. It was starting to get dark, late afternoon fading into evening and he was pretty sure that it was going to get cold.  
‘Derek!’ His shout sent several birds flying through the air. The trees here were thicker and he stumbled forward a few more feet until he was in a clearing. There was a massive oak stump in the middle of it and Stiles decided it was a good place for a rest. He’d thankfully not ditched his backpack in his moment of rut induced madness and he slumped to the ground and set it down in front of him. He took a drink from his water bottle and dug out some jerky, chewing mindlessly as he wondered just how he was going to find Derek. After all, the whole point of the challenge was that nobody knew exactly where Derek lived. 

Stiles lay back on the stump, closing his eyes and thinking about the past two days. Something scratched at the back of his mind and Stiles left it alone, waiting for the idea to come to him. He was inhaling deeply, blowing the air out to calm himself when it hit him like an Acme safe. 

He sat bolt upright and looked around him. The clearing and stump were the same as the one in the print in his room at the inn. He thought about the missing element - the wolf howling at the stars and then Allison’s revelation that Isaac was a werewolf. She’d mentioned Talia, called her an alpha and Stiles had a feeling that she wasn’t referring to her designation. It had sounded like something very different and after all, wolves ran in packs. 

Wolves, like the ones that had been reintroduced to Beacon Hills. Like the one that Derek sent to greet his suitors, the one with the key around his neck. A big black wolf with brilliant golden eyes and what seemed like a sarcastic sense of humour and who acted more human than any wolf Stiles had ever seen. 

‘Derek.’ he breathed. ‘Oh, you clever bastard.’ 

It made so much sense now, the way Shadow had interacted with him and seemed to be listening to him and also the panicked look on his wolfy face when the key had swung into Stiles’ reach. In a way he had been right. Derek hadn’t needed to be in the woods listening to him because Derek had been right there sitting on the log listening to him, and whatever he’d seen or heard had made him come to see Stiles and leave off his blockers. 

Stiles was so happy he forgot all about the fact that he was lost for a moment, kicking up leaves and thumping his feet joyfully against the ground. Derek liked him,. Derek was receptive to him because Stiles had shown him he could be trusted. That was in itself, the most amazing thing that had ever happened to him. Determination filled him and Stiles got to his feet, shouldering his pack and completely re-energised. He was going to find Derek and then he was going to tell him that he wanted to court him and he was going to show Derek that he could be the best alpha he’d ever find. 

It would have been a grand exit if he hadn’t tripped over a log, but hey. It wasn’t like anyone was around to see him.

-  
In the trees, Kate gripped her rifle stock so tightly her knuckles went white. She really couldn’t believe that was her competition, a skinny pale alpha that literally fell over his own feet and looked like he should have been hiding in a library somewhere. She’d picked up his trail earlier and followed him, hoping he’d lead her to Derek. 

After a couple of hours it had become clear that Stiles really didn’t know where he was going and Kate was incredibly frustrated. She’d been tempted to leave him to it but the thought that he would get to Derek before she did kept her on his trail. It also added a little twist to what would happen if Stiles did find him. It would be doubly sweet to kill Derek’s preferred alpha in front of him before she pumped him full of wolfsbane and sent him into an uncontrollable heat. It would be enough in Derek’s current state for him to lose any and all inhibitions. He’d be begging her to knot him again and again and when the heat broke, he’d be mated to her and unable to do a damn thing about it. 

So she waited until Stiles was a good way ahead and started following him again, keeping her footsteps quiet and her ears and eyes open. 

-

Derek ran the trails down into the preserve, one after the other. He knew the entire four hundred acres like the back of his own hand and factoring in how fast Stiles could move and where he might end up, he was taking it one section at a time to try and find him. He would have been able to do it faster if he’d known which direction Stiles had gone but he couldn’t risk going back to the clearing. They would probably be searching from there and if Talia caught him out, she’d just sequester him again. 

It was only by sheer luck that he managed to pick up a hint of Stiles’ scent. He hadn’t planned on going down into the small gorge where one of the preserve streams ran, but Derek was hot and thirsty and so he bounded down the side to the water, lapping the crystal cold water until his mouth was numb. He lifted his head, jowls dripping, and there it was. It wafted past his nose and Derek inhaled deeply, his canine receptors latching onto the scent and telling him that Stiles had been there about an hour before. He went to the opposite side, nose to ground until he found some tracks in the soft ground. Here Stiles’ scent was stronger and leading to the water. He’d obviously stopped to drink as well and then climbed up the bank. Derek chuffed, extremely pleased with his discovery, and followed. 

At the top he tracked Stiles into the trees, jogging at a steady pace as he sniffed along the ground. The trail moved in a meandering line and veered off up a rise just in front of the particularly thick stand of trees. It was there that Derek’s nose picked up something else, a spike spicy scent that made him snarl. 

It fell in behind Stiles’ scent, as if the person it belonged to was stalking him. The tracks left behind were barely discernible, and Derek had to give it to Kate. She was clearly a professional. Her footsteps and scent showed that she was keeping her distance, obviously making sure that Stiles wouldn’t pick up on her presence while she hunted him. Derek growled, and then shook off the adrenaline and focused. 

Two could play that game and between the two of them, Derek knew that he had the upper hand. Or paw. Either way, if Kate wanted to play predator and prey, he’d be happy to oblige. It just wouldn’t be in the role she was expecting.


	8. How The Tables Turn

‘So we have an alpha loose in the preserve that wants to kill my son, another one who wants to mate my son and my son, who is barely thinking clearly because he’s on the verge of heat.’ Talia’s eyes were burning red. ‘Is that about the long and the short of it?’

Laura whined. Even though she was an alpha in her own right, Talia’s disapproval still made her feel like a cub. 

‘I’m sorry.’ She would have put her ears right down if she’d been shifted. ‘He’s faster than he looks.’

‘That’s true.’ Peter sighed. ‘Derek’s always been deceptively sprinty.’ 

‘We need to find him.’ James said, arms folded. ‘It’s starting to get dark and Stiles could get hurt.’ 

Scott threw him a grateful look. He’d been left behind so that Braeden and Isaac could go into the preserve. Braeden had a military background that made her more than a match for Isaac and his wolfy skills. Allison had gone with them too, now armed to the teeth and dressed like a special forces commando. 

The rest of them were holding the fort in the Hale house. Erica and Boyd had handed over the inn to Danny and Jackson to look after for the evening and were now in the kitchen making food. It was a natural wolf response to stress and they had been cooking up a storm for the past hour. 

Lydia watched all this from her perch on one of the armchairs. She kept stealing glances at Peter, wondering if it would be terribly inappropriate to start a conversation about their respective fields of study. It would help pass the time. 

Her thoughts started drifting then to a certain Sheriff. Jordan was out patrolling the town, keeping an eye out for any sign of Stiles. Scott had blurted out the truth about the Hales almost as soon as Jordan had left the office to go put in a call about Stiles being potentially lost in the preserve. It had been in interesting development, but Lydia hadn’t gotten where she had by being an omega who was easily thrown by things and she’d taken her introduction to the supernatural in her stride. It was made clear to her that the only reason they were sharing the information was her relationship with Stiles, especially seeing how he and Derek had reacted to each other. Jordan was not in the know, although it had provoked a spirited debate about whether or not he should be told. 

She had been quietly taking the measure of the Hales and she’d been impressed with the way Talia handled things. Lydia was already fan of her politics and found that she liked her as a person as well. James Hale, an author of historical biographies Lydia had discovered, was quietly intelligent and extremely personable. Laura was dynamic and every bit as strong willed as her mother and it made for a really interesting relationship. Lydia wasn’t given to the study of human behaviour as a whole, but she liked them and found them fascinating. Scott was wildly out of his depth with them, and so he was sticking close to her. Lydia hadn’t missed the interesting little dynamic going on between him and Isaac and Allison when they’d come back. 

She was worried about Stiles, and infuriated by the story of how Kate was in this to forcibly mate Derek and steal the preserve out from under his family. As an omega herself, Lydia was well used to people trying to manipulate her. This family though seemed to produce omegas that were made of pretty strong stuff. She’d caught snippets of conversation about Peter and Chris Argent and seen how they’d locked horns pretty much the whole time she’d been in their company. And after hearing how Derek had taken off to go find Stiles, Lydia felt relieved that he was not the kind to take this lying down. 

Now she just hoped that they would all come out of this unscathed. Not Kate though. As far as Lydia was concerned, that bitch could go rot. 

-

Kate was not too far ahead. Derek could smell her, her scent making his stomach turn. He could also hear Stiles muttering to himself as clear as day, talking about how he was going to find Derek and take care of him and make sure nobody hurt him. That had his stomach lurching for a completely different reason. 

They were now heading towards the northern border of the preserve where it ran into the low foothills that separated it from the county over. It was tricker going, the number of deep hollows increasing and the footing getting more treacherous. He desperately wanted to get past Kate and head Stiles off, get him to somewhere Derek didn’t have to worry about him falling.

He couldn’t lose him, not like he lost Paige. That would be too cruel. 

-

Stiles ran a hand over his brow. It was getting chilly as the sun dipped, but he actually felt like he was heating up. He stopped to catch his breath again and looked up. The edge of the horizon that he could see through the trees was starting to tinge purple and blue and he checked his watch, seeing it was a little past six. His stomach growled and Stiles decided that he needed to stop. It wouldn’t help to go stumbling around in the dark. 

He checked out his surroundings. The land her was sloped, edging towards a deeper gorge than the one he’d stopped to drink in earlier. There seemed to be no water at the bottom of this one and the soil around the edges was dry and crumbly so Stiles edged away from it. He did not want to take a tumble. 

‘Goddammit.’ he said softly. ‘Derek, where the hell are you?’

There was a sharp snap behind him and Stiles wheeled around. 

‘Derek?’ He couldn’t keep the hope out of his voice. 

‘Aw, sorry sweetie.’ The words made him freeze in place. ‘I was going to wait until he showed up to do this, but frankly I’m bored and we’re far enough out that they’ll still be looking for you for weeks and I need to speed things up while wolf-boy is under the influence. So, do me a favour and hold the fuck still.’ 

Kate stepped out of the trees, an infuriatingly smug smile on her face and a nasty looking rifle levelled at him. Stiles was no stranger to firearms being the son of a cop, and he knew that it meant business. It looked like a high calibre weapon and he was under no illusions that kate was more than likely an expert shot, so he put his hands up instantly. 

‘You don’t need to do this.’ he said slowly and Kate laughed. 

‘Of course I do.’ Her mouth twisted. ‘Do you know how many fucking years I’ve been trying to mate that stupid omega? I had plans and every damn time it looked like I might get close to getting what I wanted, things fucked up. He had a girlfriend the first time I came here, some stuck up little alpha that looked like innocence personified. I didn’t let that stop me though. I waited until I could get her alone and then chased her down a cliff. The stupid little bitch broke her neck. I was hoping it would break his heart enough that I could pick up the pieces but then he got taken out of school and closeted by his pack and I couldn’t get anywhere close.’ 

‘Jesus.’ Stiles swallowed hard. ‘What the fuck is wrong with you?’

‘Then I came back the year after.’ Kate took a couple of steps towards him. ‘I got a job teaching at the school, tried to get in that way. The little bitch wouldn’t even give me the time of day. I tried being nice and then I got sick of his games so I was a little more direct. He grassed me up to his uncle and I got fired. Then I came back every year, going through that stupid courting routine. It was real smart, pretending to be a wolf. What he didn’t know was that I know they’re all werewolves.’ Her eyes had an insane glitter. ‘Bet that’s not what you were expecting, right? They’re all monsters.’

‘Derek’s not a monster.’ Stiles snapped. ‘And you’re not telling me anything I don’t already know.’ Kate didn’t need to know that he’d literally found out that afternoon. ‘So what if he’s werewolf? I don’t care, because all I want is him.’

‘God.’ Kate was scornful. ‘I don’t know what the hell you’ve got. He hasn’t looked at a single alpha since his little girlfriend, not a single one of us. We’ve all been ten times the alpha you are. You’re nothing, no connections, no power, no strength. How did you even get him to look at you?’

Stiles heard the jealous anger in her voice and suddenly it was clear. Kate hated Derek, hated what he was, and at the same time she was clearly obsessed with him and had been for years. 

‘You’re fixated on him.’ He shook his head at her. ‘You think you’re in control of this, but in reality he’s the one that controls every thing you do. You want to know why he looked at me. It’s because I’m not an alpha like you. I didn’t come here to conquer him, to win him like he’s some stupid prize that I can put in my metaphorical trophy case. I came here for a story and found an actual person.’ 

‘Oh, fuck you.’ Kate snorted. ‘You sanctimonious little prick. You don’t give a fuck about Derek, just what your scoop can get you.’

‘Maybe a day ago I would have agreed with you.’ Stiles spat, in spite of the fact that she still had her rifle pointed at him. His heart was pounding and his mind racing at Kate’s confession and her complete disregard for the fact that she’d murdered somebody all to get to Derek. ‘But then I got to see him, talk to him, and this morning I got to scent him.’ He could see from the way her entire body tensed that he’d hit a nerve. ‘Yeah, see he left off his blockers for me. Derek liked the way I smelled and the way I spoke to him enough to decide that I was worth pursuing. You know what my secret is? I’m not in it for anything and he can tell that. He’s free to choose me if he wants, but if he doesn’t I’m not going to act like an asshole and keep pushing.’ 

‘Not for long.’ Kate smirked. ‘Once I’m done with you, all I need to do is track him down and give him a little push.’ She tapped the barrel of her rifle with one fingernail. ‘These bullets are filled with a very special blend of wolfsbane. They’ll kill you nice and easy but not him. Werewolves don’t go down easy, but that’s okay. The wolfsbane in this isn’t meant to kill him, just make that pre-heat you’ve thrown him into turn into the real thing. He’ll be so far gone, I’ll be able to do anything I want to him and he won’t be able to stop me.’

Stiles saw red. He’d heard about alphas losing their minds during a rut, getting to the point of being feral if something threatened their omega but he’d never thought he’d ever be like that. Now though, hearing Kate speak so casually about sexually assaulting Derek like it was just something she could do, he was enraged. He opened his mouth and the noise that came out was louder than anything he’d ever made, a roar of protective outrage that shattered the still air. 

Kate was clearly not expecting the reaction she got, still happily monologuing even as Stiles threw himself at her. He was close enough that he got both hands around the barrel of the rifle and knocked it up so her instinctive squeeze of the trigger sent the round into the air. She was string and wiry but Stiles was no slouch in that department and he had pure adrenaline on his side and they grappled for control of the weapon, grunting and growling at each other until something much louder snarled and they both froze.

Brilliant golden eyes flashed and Stiles threw himself back as a massive black shape came bolting out of the trees and leaped right over his head, slamming into Kate and knocking her right off her feet. She yelped as she landed, one leg twisted underneath her and a sharp cracking sound indicating she’d probably broken something. The wolf landed over her, his fangs bared in her face and Stiles was not so noble that he didn’t feel gleeful at the fear on Kate’s face. He scrambled across the ground, grabbing her fallen rifle and getting to his feet, aiming it right at her. He got a good look at the wolf, the thick black fur and golden eyes leaving him in no doubt as to who it was. 

‘Hey.’ he said, gentling his voice. ‘Derek. It’s okay. I’ve got her covered.’

The wolf visibly startled but didn’t move, still growling ferociously in Kate's face. Stiles moved so he could get in Derek’s direct eyeline.

‘I know.’ he said. ‘I know what you are. Isaac told us this afternoon when we ran into Allison. I know you’re a werewolf and that you’ve been pretending to be Shadow so you can get rid of the alphas. I also know that Kate is a hunter and that she’s been planning to kill you and your pack, but I’m assuming you overheard all that just now, didn’t you?’

Derek whined, and glanced up at him. Their eyes met and held and Stiles could see the man looking out at him. That was also when Stiles saw the key dangling from his neck and unfortunately, so did Kate. She let out a screechy sound and twisted frantically, trying to grab it and Derek roared in her face and pinned her down with his massive paws. 

‘Yeah.’ Stiles knew it was spiteful but then again Kate was a truly hateful person and so he refused to feel bad when her face twisted in pain. ‘You probably shouldn’t have made him mad. I guess that he really did hear everything, including how you killed his girlfriend.’ 

The noise that Derek let out was terrifying. Kate had to turn her head away as he lowered his and Stiles smiled. 

‘Maybe I should let him rip out your throat with his teeth.’ he said. ‘Like you said, it’ll be weeks before they find you and I really don’t think letting you go would be the answer, especially after you threatened to rape my mate.’ 

Using the word sent a shiver down his spine and he was pretty sure that Derek’s eyes glowed even more brightly. Stiles could now recognise elements of him in the wolf’s scent, the earthiness and musk just more pronounced with sweetness seeping through. Derek seemed to really like the idea of Stiles referring to him like that. 

‘He’s never going to be yours.’ Kate hissed through gritted teeth. ‘You’ll never be able to keep him.’

‘Watch me.’ Stiles said and gave Derek a razor sharp smile. ‘Let her go. She’s not going to hurt us because if she does I’ll put a bullet right through her pretty blonde head.’ 

Derek gave one last low growl and backed off, moving a safe distance away and sitting back on his haunches. His eyes were searching when he looked at Stiles, who skirted around Kate and came to stand facing him. They looked at each other for what seemed like an age until Stiles crouched down to be eye to eye with him. 

‘I mean it.’ he said. ‘I would never hurt you. I would never force you. I would always let you choose.’ 

Derek whuffed out a deep sigh and then he changed. It was fluid and strangely beautiful to see, the way his whole body unfolded from four feet to two, the thick black fur melting away until he was standing in front of Stiles, his eyes changing back from gold to green and heartbreakingly beautiful look of hope on his face. 

‘And what if I chose you?’ he asked and took a tentative step forward, the key gleaming on his bare chest. ‘What if this could be yours?’ He reached for it, wrapping his hand around it and clutching it tightly. 

‘Then I would gladly accept it and guard it with my life.’ Stiles replied, his whole heart thumping so loud it was deafening him. ‘I would do my best to never betray that trust.’

Derek breathed out deeply and looked down at Kate, his face going cold. 

‘You killed Paige.’ It wasn’t a question. 

‘She wasn’t worthy of you.’ Kate’s face was creased up with pain but the hatred was still there. ‘I should have been your alpha. I would have shown you your place, mutt.’ She let out a choked off laugh. ‘It was so easy. She ran like a frightened little bunny, right over the edge. I didn’t even have to do anything.’ 

Derek’s growl rumbled from deep in his chest and Stiles moved to intercept him. 

‘Hey.’ He managed to get Derek looking at him. ‘That’s two of us who’ve heard her say it. She’ll go to prison for this.’ 

It was only a second but with his focus on Derek, both of them were distracted and didn’t see Kate stagger to her feet until she had her hand at her back, taking out another gun that she’d obviously had concealed. The shot was fired before Stiles even knew what she was doing and Derek roared and through himself forward, bearing Stiles to the ground even as a noise cut through the air. Whatever it was caught Kate and she screamed out and toppled over, a crossbow bolt sticking out of her shoulder. 

At first Stiles thought Derek was dead, his weight crushing him and he panicked and grabbed hold of him and hugged him tight. 

‘No, no, no.’ he babbled, fear turning his blood to ice. ‘Derek! You can’t die, you asshole! Not when I’ve just found you.’ 

He vaguely registered Allison and Braeden coming past him and going to the still screaming Kate. Someone moved next to him and then Derek was being lifted off him and Stiles drew in a deep breath, still frantic as he sat up and looked over to where Isaac had Derek braced against him. 

‘He’s been shot.’ he said to Braeden, who was busy cuffing Kate. 

‘It’s wolfsbane.’ Allison was already scouting around for the weapon. She picked it up and came over, ejecting the magazine and emptying a round into her hand. ‘Use this.’

Stiles crawled over to them. Derek was thankfully not dead as he’d assumed, but there was a nasty looking wound in his ribs on the left side, ugly streaks of black worming their way under his skin. He held out a hand to Stiles and Stiles grabbed it. 

‘He’ll be okay.’ Allison put a hand on his shoulder. ‘Watch.’ 

Isaac had the round, twisting the end off the bullet to reveal the contents. He poured them right onto the ground and Allison knelt, a lighter in her hand. She set the gunpowder aflame and Stiles saw purple tinged smoke and smelled something floral and sharp. Allison waited until the flame died out before scooping up the ash. 

‘Hold him.’ she said and Isaac tightened his arms around Derek. Restraining him when Allison mashed the ash directly into the bullet wound. Derek roared, eyes gold as he nearly crushed Stiles’ hand, and writhed around as whatever was in the ash went to work. The black lines retreated and the wound sealed up until all that was left was the black smear of residue left by the corrupted blood. 

Derek relaxed, his eyes going back to normal. He blew out a pained breath and smiled at Stiles. 

‘Still here.’ he murmured and Stiles didn’t know whether he wanted to punch him or kiss him. 

‘You asshole.’ he hissed and decided for the latter. Of course, his natural clumsiness meant he ended up falling when he meant to swoop in and he ended up more or less sprawled over a very naked Derek, his face in fire. 

Derek blinked at him, eyes still a little bleary, then smiled. It was soft around the edges and Stiles stared at it, completely hypnotised. 

‘You’re a terrible alpha.’ Derek said, but he sounded incredibly fond and the sweetness was ebbing back into his scent. 

‘What can I say?’ Stiles returned his smile. ‘I’m sorry but from what I’ve seen, maybe I’m a better choice.’

‘Yeah.’ Derek raised one hand, the skin still striped with dirt and blood. He cupped Stiles’ face and then leaned in, nudging his nose with his own. ‘Thank you for coming to my rescue.’

‘Jesus Christ.’ Braeden was now standing over them. ‘You two are ridiculous. Derek, are you healing?’

‘Yes.’ Derek moved and Stiles scrambled to get off of him. He watched Isaac get Derek back on his feet, marvelling at how the hole in Derek’s ribs was now nothing more than an angry looking scab and then gaped even more when Derek dropped effortlessly to all fours, changing back into the big black wolf the world knew as Shadow. 

‘That’s going to take some getting used to.’ he said and Braeden snorted. 

‘What are we doing with her?’ she asked, jerking her head in the direction of the still whining Kate, now restrained but sadly not silent. Allison was still standing over her, her crossbow reloaded and trained on Kate’s head. 

‘Give her to the Sheriff.’ Stiles couldn’t help but butt in. ‘I assume you heard what she about Derek’s girlfriend.’ 

‘I did.’ Isaac’s eyes were glowing angrily. ‘We’ve got three witnesses to that little confession.’ He turned to Derek. ‘You need to go, I can smell the heat on you.’ 

Stiles froze. He’d been so distracted by Derek being injured that he hadn’t really registered much else. Now he inhaled and it was like touching a match to a piece of paper. Derek’s wolf form smelled just as good as his human form, but now there was a sultry edge to it. It was lush and green and even stronger than it had been at the inn. 

Derek’s tongue lolled out in a wolfy grin and he barked once, sharp and commanding before trotting off to the edge of the trees. He stopped, looking back at Stiles with his head tilted. 

‘I think he wants you to go with him.’ Isaac chuckled. ‘It’s okay, we can handle this.’ His eyes were twinkling. ‘Go on, you don’t want to pass this up. Derek might change his mind.’ 

That was all the encouragement Stiles needed. He left the others in the clearing and went to Derek, following him back into the trees without looking back.


	9. Mating 101

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Smut, smut, smut :) featuring bossy omega Derek, alpha Stiles being an adorable idiot and many bodily fluids. Knotting is a given :)

The preserve was different when Stiles wasn’t running through it in desperation. With Derek in front of him, guiding him wherever they were going, he could listen to the sounds of the evening changing into nighttime. The air was on the right side of cold and he was grateful. Walking in the wake of Derek’s scent, which seemed to be getting stronger with every passing step, he was feeling the same stupor coming over him that he’d experienced in the inn.

Up ahead, Derek was trotting with a jaunty bounce, his plumy tail wagging gently every time he looked back at Stiles. He waited at the top of a gentle rise and as Stiles got to him, his eyes widened.

There was a cabin in front of them. It was old and rough looking, but the windows were filled with light and there was the smell of food drifting out. Derek watched him take a few steps forward and whuffed softly. Stiles stopped and then crouched down so they were looking at each other.

‘Is that it?’ he asked and Derek nodded. He came closer and then sat, lifting his head in offering, the key resting against his chest. It made Stiles catch his breath, his heart picking up until it felt like it would beat right out of his chest.

He reached out a trembling hand, clasping it into a fist before it made contact and meeting Derek’s eyes. They were warm and golden and absolutely beautiful. He made a low rumbling sound in his chest and Stiles took a deep breath, the scent of receptive omega so obvious now that he would have been a complete idiot to miss it.

‘Are you sure?’ he asked. ‘Because if we do this, I’m going to be hell bent on keeping you.’

Derek snorted at him and leaned forward, touching his nose to Stiles’ hand. Stiles blew out his anxiety and then reached for the key. It was chilled from the air, but the soft fur beneath it was alive and radiating heat. He closed his hand around the key and Derek backed away, lowering his head so the chain was lifted off from around his neck.

Stiles stared at it and then back at Derek, who gave a happy bark and bounded off in the direction of the cabin. He got up, wincing a little at the ache in his knees after running around for most of the evening, not to mention his throwing himself at Kate, and walked the short distance to the porch. His hand was shaking as he used the key to unlock the door, but his nerves were quickly dispelled by Derek rudely pushing past him in the time honoured fashion of canine companions everywhere.

‘Hey.’ Stiles protested, closing the door behind him, but it was mostly for show. ‘Your wolfy ass nearly knocked me over.’

Derek gave a loud snort and then disappeared up the stairs that were just inside the door. Stiles came in, his eyes taking in the simplicity of the space. The fire was barely alive but still warm enough and he went to stand by it, shoving the key in his back pocket so he could warm his hands. He inspected the room, smiling at the worn couches that looked incredibly comfortable and the shelves full of books. There was a kitchen to the rear and the smell of the food he could just see on top of the stove mixed with the deeper saturation of Derek’s omega scent throughout the space. Stiles turned so he could warm his ass, breathing in deeply. He was feeling lightheaded, the adrenaline wearing off and being replaced by a deep seated hunger for something else. He’d successfully seen off Kate and now his body was demanding that he claim what was his.

He listened intently, trying to hear what Derek was up to. There was the vague sound of water and the very thought of Derek getting cleaned up led to thinking that maybe it was for him and that just made Stiles’ brain go in all sorts of directions. He hadn’t really been paying attention to naked Derek, because _blood_ , and so he just stared at the ceiling and imagined acres of wet skin and the clean way Derek would smell when he came out.

Something ticked over in Stiles brain and it was like his feet were on autopilot. He found himself in the kitchen, looking at the dish of mac and cheese that had been made, along with a tray of blondies. He loved a good blondie, but noticed that these were un-iced and that just wouldn’t do. He glanced back up at the ceiling, his alpha brain telling him that Derek probably needed food. He didn’t have a clue about werewolf healing but Stiles knew what he was like after a shock. Not only that, but the thought of Derek going into a proper heat meant that he’d be starving pretty soon so Stiles got to work.

He turned the over back on. The mac and cheese was still warm so it wouldn’t take too long to get hot again. He found cream cheese in the fridge and icing sugar in the cupboard over the counter, and it didn’t take long to make frosting for the blondies and spread an inch thick layer all over them. The fridge held enough ingredients for a salad and there was a couple of part bake loaves in the freezer that he turned into garlic bread and stuck in the oven as well.

He didn’t hear Derek approach so much as smell him. This time there was no denying the honey sweet tendrils that rippled through his scent and Stiles had to grip the counter when he turned around because he was standing there, dark grey sweatpants hanging low on his hips and showcasing a pair of obliques that looked like they’d been hand carved. He had a towel that he was busy using to dry his hair, green eyes appreciative as he took in the sight of all the food being made.

Stiles’ eyes were drawn to the spot on his ribs, now nothing more than a slight pinking of the skin. Derek’s skin was a uniform warm tan, his chest and stomach furred in black with the mouth-watering line of hair dipping down below the waistband of his sweatpants.

‘So, werewolves.’ he said, his voice wavering as he fought to control the way his cock was hardening like he was fifteen and permanently horny again. They needed to at least have something resembling a conversation before they jumped into bed.

‘Yeah.’ Derek smirked, lifting his head and blatantly sniffing the air. ‘Sorry for kind of springing that on you.’

‘Technically it was Allison Argent that did that.’ Stiles rubbed the back of his neck. He was starting to feel overly sweaty and wished for his own shower. ‘Kate’s not going to get away with this is she?’

‘No. My family will make sure of that.’ Derek chucked the towel aside and came to him, moving like a predator. It made Stiles’ mouth dry and he leaned against the counter, making a small sound when Derek caged him in. He inhaled deeply, his pupils visibly dilating and Stiles wondered how he smelled. Up close like this, Derek’s scent was heady so he could only imagine what a werewolf nose must be smelling. His cock was now fully erect, pressing against his jeans in a way that made him want to rub off on something. More specifically, on those very impressive abs that were inches from his own somewhat less impressive set.

‘So, I kind of made more food.’ He looked back at the counter and then back at Derek, who had one eyebrow arched and teasing little smile on his face. ‘You should eat.’

‘So I see.’ he replied. ‘You know, not a single alpha that has come to court me has ever offered me food.’

‘No?’ Stiles frowned. ‘What have they offered you?’

‘Money. Jewelry on occasion. Cars.’ Derek grinned.

Stiles drooped.

‘I can’t offer you anything like that.’ he replied, feeling despondent. ‘Starving writer type person here.’

‘If I wanted an alpha to buy me, I would have chosen one of them.’ Derek’s eyes darted to the counter. ‘You iced the blondies.’

‘Oh?’ Stiles frowned and then nodded. ‘I mean, who doesn't like them iced? Plus you could probably use the sugar. I also made salad, cause you need to stay healthy.’ He trailed off as Derek’s eyes flashed gold.

‘You threw yourself at Kate for me.’ His voice was pitched low. ‘You didn’t even think about how dangerous it was.’

‘I didn’t care.’ Stiles admitted. ‘I didn’t want her to hurt…’

He never got to finish the sentence because Derek was kissing him, his mouth a warm insistent press that made Stiles whimper. He went weak in the knees, barely able to even stand when Derek pulled back.

‘You’re right.’ he said, still smiling. ‘We do need to eat. I can feel the heat coming on and you’re going to need all your energy because I have about ten years to catch up on.’ He looked down at the very obvious bulge in Stiles’ jeans, his nose visibly twitching. ‘And you smell really fucking good.’

‘Okay.’ Stiles squeaked. ‘We can do that.’

‘Good.’ Derek stepped back. ‘And then afterwards, we’re going upstairs and you’re going to knot the fuck out of me because I’m already wet.’

‘Oh God.’ Stiles was pretty much on the verge of coming himself. ‘Whatever you want.’

‘Damn right.’ Derek said. He grabbed the tray of blondies, balancing them on one hand and shoving one in his mouth with the other. Stiles watched him with stars in his eyes, grabbing the rest of the food and following him back to the living room.

-

‘Holy crap.’ Jordan looked astounded. ‘She was planning to murder your whole family?’

‘Yes.’ Talia said briskly.

‘And what about this cold case?’ He was staring at Kate where she was in the station’s holding cell. She’d been given medical attention by Deaton and was deemed to be out of danger. If no painkillers had been administered, well that seemed like a light punishment for what she’d confessed to.

‘That too.’ Laura folded her arms. ‘We have three separate witnesses to her stating that she was the one who caused Paige’s death.’

‘Is that so?’ Jordan looked at Chris and Allison.

‘It is.’ Allison replied, her dark eyes fierce. ‘I heard her.’

‘We’ve known about her illegal activity for some time.’ Chris said. ‘My daughter and I have been working with the FBI this past month. We came here hoping to get enough evidence for her to be prosecuted.’  
‘It looks like you succeeded.’ Jordan remarked. He’d been worried that he would be bored being Sheriff here in small town Beacon Hills, but he was starting to very strongly suspect that he was wrong.

‘Good.’ Talia gave him a brilliant smile. ‘In that case. You can make sure she stays put until Mr Argent makes some calls in the morning and they come to get her. In the meantime, can I suggest that we go back to the house for dinner?’ Her sharp brown eyes landed on Chris. ‘You too, Mr Argent. I think there’s a long conversation that needs to be had.’

Jordan wondered what he was missing and briefly lamented that he was going to be tied up with paperwork after this. He would have liked to see Lydia again.

As if reading his mind, Talia hesitated at the door.

‘You should come around tomorrow, Sheriff.’ she said. ‘Miss Martin will be staying at our house overnight. She’s planning to engage my brother in conversation and I anticipate she may be around for at least a couple of days. Not only that, but I think you and I need to have a talk as well.’

With that, she left and Jordan wondered just what the hell he was getting himself into.

-

Dinner was messy. Derek certainly ate like a wolf, although his heat was probably aggravating his appetite as well. Stiles watched in deep admiration as he consumed one whole loaf of garlic bread, two thirds of the mac and cheese and almost all the blondies. The only reason Stiles had managed to get one was because he’d looked pathetically at it on its way towards Derek’s mouth. That had been it though because Derek had actually growled at him when he’d tried to take one the first time.

Now he was licking the remains of the frosting off his fingers, throwing heated looks at Stiles and clearly extremely smug about the fact that Stiles had shift to alleviate the pressure in his pants.

‘You have no shame.’ he accused and Derek snorted.

‘I know what I want.’ he replied, lazily trailing his fingers down his bare chest. ‘And now that I’m fed, I want to move onto the next part.’ He was also sweating but where Stiles went red and blotchy, Derek just seemed to gleam like an extra in a hot gladiator movie. It was all too much and he found himself lurching towards him, their mouths connecting in a clash of teeth.

‘Fuck.’ Stiles pulled back, hand over his mouth. ‘Sorry.’

‘Nothing to be sorry for.’ Derek smiled and pulled him back in by his shirt. The kiss was gentler this time, exploratory and soft as they familiarised themselves with each other. Stiles melted into it, Derek’s scent and the heat of his mouth the only thing he was really aware of. He lifted a hand, missing a few times before he found the back of Derek’s neck. Derek growled against his mouth, opening up when Stiles squeezed gently. The light touch of tongues was enough to send the kiss spiralling into open-mouthed madness as they both gave up on any pretence at restraint.

Stiles found himself being bowled over, Derek’s eagerness giving him the impetus he needed to slide his hands up his broad back, feeling the flex of muscles under his hands as Derek all but attacked his mouth. They had to part for air and Stiles panted up at him happily.

‘You may have to carry me.’ he joked. ‘I’m kind of knocked out after that.’

‘Okay.’ Derek said and Stiles let out a shriek as he was manhandled off the ground and thrown over Derek’s shoulder. It did give him a superlative view of the black triskelion tattooed between Derek’s shoulder blades, as well as his ass and he whined when he saw and smelled the wet patch on the back of Derek’s sweatpants.

‘This is inhuman.’ he muttered and Derek laughed, nearly galloping up the stairs. He took them into a room, dominated by a super king sized bed that looked like it had had the entire contents of Bed, Bath and Beyond emptied onto it. The alpha part of Stiles’ brain was delighted.

‘That’s one hell of a nest.’ he said and could almost hear Derek preening.

‘Den.’ he corrected and then tossed Stiles into the carefully arranged heap of blankets and pillows like he weighed nothing. He righted himself, struggling to shed his clothing as quickly as possible. Derek’s scent was intensifying and Stiles knew it was only a matter of time before they both lost their collective minds. He caught sight of the three bottles of lube and a collection of quite intimidating dildos on the nightstand and managed to give Derek an astonished look.

‘We’ll need them.’ Derek’s smile was cocky. ‘You’re going to be in rut but I’m pretty hard to keep up with. It’s a werewolf thing.’

‘Fair point.’ Stiles got tangled in his shirt and heard Derek chuckle. ‘A little help here?’

He froze when instead of getting his shirt off, Derek licked his left nipple. It was like an electric shock straight to his cock and Stiles thrashed around until he could get it off.

‘Son of a bitch.’ he breathed and Derek looked up at him with faux-innocent green eyes and bit down. He was still in his sweat but they were now obscenely tented. He dragged his tongue across to Stiles’ other nipple, his pupils visibly dilating as he sucked on it.

Stiles cleared his throat.

‘We should probably lay down some ground rules before things get out of control.’ he said and Derek shrugged, shoving him down onto his back and straddling him.

‘Deaton gave me a shot, so we don’t need to worry about you knocking me up on our first try.’ he growled, undoing Stiles’ belt. ‘I can’t carry anything but if you want a condom, I’ve got some around.’

‘What for?’ Stiles asked before he could stop himself and Derek’s expression turned sly, eyes darting to the nightstand. ‘Oh right.’ He moaned as his jeans were yanked down his legs, lying there helpless as Derek made short work of his boots by simply clawing through the laces, chucking them over his shoulder and then doing the same with his socks.

‘Too many goddamn clothes.’ he muttered, lisping around a mouthful of fangs and Stiles started laughing.

‘This is crazy.’ He pawed feebly at Derek’s chest, his hormones out of control at the way his fingertips skidded over Derek’s sweat slick skin. ‘Come on already. Let’s get this show on the road.’

Derek growled at him, flipping over to wriggle out of his sweatpants and then he was back, one hand pinning Stiles to the bed and the other wrapping around Stiles’ cock. His strokes were erratic and Stiles could already feel the beginnings of his knot. The red hot feeling settled in the back of his head as his rut took hold and he grabbed Derek by the arms and flipped the again, his alpha strength kicking in like it never had before.

Derek snarled, his eyes lighting up, and it was Stiles’ turn to slam him back into the bed.

‘Stay.’ he ordered, using his alpha voice and Derek’s legs fell open to accommodate him. The scent of him was driving Stiles wild and he had to get to where it was strongest, sliding down the bed until his face was buried in Derek’s crotch. He rubbed his cheek long Derek’s cock, lapping briefly at the streaks of precome before dipping lower. He’d fucked a couple of omegas outside of heat, but this was new territory. Derek was fever hot and soaking wet, slick coating the insides of his thighs.

Stiles glanced up, meeting his eyes.

‘Okay?’ he asked and Derek whined and nodded frantically.

‘Please.’ he threw his head back, body clenching down tight around Stiles’ fingers when he ran them over his entrance. It took no work at all, Derek already so wet and open that they glided in.

‘Oh wow.’ he breathed in reverence and Derek arched into his hand. There was a ripping sound of fabric meeting what he assumed were claws and Stiles grinned, twisting his fingers in and out a couple of times just to see Derek react so perfectly. His body was even hotter on the inside, slick leaking out around Stiles fingers until his hand was wet with it. He chanced a quick lick and the taste of Derek made him moan. He started licking in earnest, fucking Derek on two fingers and hoping like hell he didn’t knot completely before he got inside him.

Above him, Derek was making a whole litany of unashamed noises. His long legs undulated helplessly against Stiles’ sides and Stiles thrilled at the way he was clearly driving him crazy. He bit the inside of Derek’s thigh and got a growl.

‘I’m going to fuck you silly.’ he muttered, sticking his face back in the damp curls around Derek’s cock and breathing him in. ‘I’m going to make you come so many times and then I’ going to knot you until you are locked in around me.’

‘You talk too fucking much.’ Derek was hoarse. ‘Just fucking do it.’

‘In a minute.’ Rut was making Stiles aggressive and he pulled his fingers out, replacing them with his tongue. Derek made a desperate sound and his thighs came up, almost crushing Stiles’ head between them. He got hold of Derek’s hips, fingers digging in hard and Derek yelped and came against his mouth, slick flooding out.

‘Fuck.’ He was still shaking when Stiles moved up to check, giving him a furious look when he saw he’d stopped. ‘What the hell are you looking at? Get up here and fuck me.’

‘Heat makes you really bossy.’ Stiles muttered but he did as he was told, crawling up Derek’s body. There was a smear of white across Derek’s stomach and matted in his happy trail and Stiles took a moment to lick it away. The taste of Derek’s come was every bit as good as his slick and he moaned happily.

‘Ha, that’s what you think.’ Derek laughed, patting aimlessly at his head as he lapped. ‘I’m this bossy all the time.’

His eyes were back to green, his face completely human when Stiles finally reached him. They fell into a messy kiss that was more tongue than anything else before Derek pushed him away and rolled over onto his stomach, bracing himself in his elbows so he could present and Stiles nearly went cross-eyed with lust. He struggled onto his knees, running his hands up Derek’s back before following with his tongue. Derek whined and pushed back into him.

‘In me. Please.’ He ducked his head and Stiles followed, licking at the nape of his neck.

‘Are we really doing this?’ he panted. ‘We haven’t even courted yet?’

‘I don’t need courting.’ Derek turned his head, his breath hot against Stiles’ cheek. ‘I just need you.’ Big green eyes blinked at Stiles. ‘Please, alpha.’

‘Dammit.’ Stiles had no defence against that. His hips were moving of their own accord, seeking out what he needed most and Derek moved to accommodate him, both of them crying out when Stiles drove home in one deep thrust.

‘Fuck.’ Derek’s head fell back down and he shuddered when Stiles drew back and thrust in as deep as he could go. ‘Just like that.’

Stiles grinned and licked the dark tendrils of Derek’s tattoo.

‘I can do better than that.’ he said and went to town. Sex had always been on his favourite things, but this was next level. Every drive inside of Derek was hot and tight and so very wet. The impact of their bodies was loud, Derek’s growls matching Stiles’ moans until he felt himself go past the point of no return. His knot swelled up on the next push in and Derek grunted and reached back to hold Stiles inside him. His body was contracting and releasing steadily and it felt like absolute heaven on Stiles’ knot.

‘There.’ Derek was completely breathless. ‘Oh fuck, yes…’

He threw back his head, roaring as he came and his internal muscles locked down in a merciless grip around Stiles’ cock. Stiles bit his lip at the intensity, his own orgasm yanked right out of him. It was fireworks and stars and every other stupid cliche he could think of, his whole body tightening up until he fell forward, sinking his teeth into the back of Derek’s neck. He felt the bonding gland give under the pressure, and then it was like someone had dumped an entire barrel of happy hormones over both of them. Instead of abating, Stiles’ orgasm intensified and he came repeatedly for what felt like hours but which was actually only minutes. Derek was doing the same, the initial mating designed to keep them locked together for at least half an hour.

They ended up collapsed on the bed. Stiles finally stopped coming, but he could feel that Derek was still going, his ass still releasing and tightening around Stiles’ knot. He’d always heard that omegas in heat would orgasm almost continuously until that first tying was done and he raised himself on his elbows to ease the weight, licking at the bruise he’d made. Derek’s hand came up and Stiles playfully nipped at his fingers, sucking two into his mouth and tasting the come on them.

‘Damn.’ Derek said from somewhere inside the pillow he was face down in. ‘Okay, we’re doing that again.’

‘Not now though.’ Stiles laughed. ‘Now we do the compulsory conversation where we actually get to know each other.’

‘Ugh, fine.’ Derek grumbled, but he let Stiles tip them over onto their sides. ‘Just…’ He grabbed Stiles hand and dragged it down to his cock, still hard.

‘Fuck.’ Stiles had never heard of this happening, never even seen it in porn. He stroked gently and Derek bowed back and came again. It was barely more than a tiny pulse of come but it made Stiles smile like he’d just won the lottery. In a sense he actually had.

‘The sex lottery.’ he chuckled to himself and Derek snorted. He was working himself on Stiles knot, bearing down deliberately and that got Stiles to shut up pretty quickly.

‘Thought you wanted to talk.’ he snarked and Stiles had no answer to that so he rolled his hips hard and bit him on the neck again. His cock was still hard, even after the rolling orgasm, and he did it again until he was back to a steady rhythm.

‘We can still talk.’ he said through gritted teeth. ‘How about we start with your family and the whole werewolf thing?’

‘Fuck off.’ Derek sniggered, groaning when Stiles thrust in hard. ‘How about we just go back to fucking?’

It was a brilliant idea and Stiles couldn’t argue so for the next few hours, they did.

By the time the sun was coming up, they’d been screwing on and off for at least seven hours and Stiles was done. He was pretty sure his cock was about to fall off. Derek was still deep in heat though and so they switched to toys. He was now on his back with Stiles straddling him in the opposite direction working the largest of his four dildos in and out of him while he sucked his cock. Derek had a good cock for sucking, thick and long enough to gag him if he went too deep.

Stiles eased back, trailing his tongue around the head of Derek’s cock as he watched the dildo sink in right to the artificial knot. He gave it a hard push and Derek’s body stretched wide to accommodate it, his entrance swollen from the abuse. Stiles licked around the base of the knot a few times and moved so he was in line with Derek’s face. Derek immediately got hold of him, nuzzling against Stiles’ spent cock, his mouth just as wet as his ass. He licked messy streaks of saliva over it, sucking on the head and smiling when Stiles whined.

‘You’re an animal.’ he grumbled. ‘I can take this anymore.’

Derek just hummed around him and Stiles rolled his eyes at him, before taking him back down again. He was pretty sure that he’d sleep for about a week after this. Nobody had warned him that mating was this tiring. He redoubled his efforts, sucking hard, and was rewarded with a weak growl and Derek’s going rigid as he came. There was barely anything to swallow and Stiles flopped over onto his back, dislodging himself and the dildo before he beckoned with an exhausted hand.

‘Come here.’ He patted the bed next to him and Derek crawled into his arms, plastering himself to Stiles’ front. ‘Christ you’re sticky.’

‘So are you.’ Derek stuck his nose in Stiles’ neck. ‘You smell amazing.’

Stiles smiled. He had to admit that Derek was right. The whole bed stank of come and sweat and them and it was truly glorious. He was probably never going to leave.

That thought, along with the fact that he was thinking a little bit clearer made him raise his head and look at his new mate.

‘Fuck!’ His eyes went wide. ‘I haven’t even told my parents.’

Derek looked startled and then his eyes crinkled as he started laughing. Stiles felt his stomach swoop. They’d been doing a lot of that and it made his heart soar everytime.

‘We won’t need to tell mine.’ Derek was gleeful. ‘They’ll be able to smell you all over me and me all over you. We smell utterly fucking _mated_.’

‘I hate you.’ Stiles grumbled, poking him in the ribs and then wincing when Derek poked him back much harder.

‘You do now.’ he purred, green eyes sleepy and satisfied. ‘But in a couple of weeks you’ll love me.’ Then he made the most ridiculous kissing face at Stiles, who grinned and turned onto his side to accept the kiss he was being offered. He knew that it would take far less time than that.


	10. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end! If you enjoyed it or would like to see something more in this verse, feel free to leave a comment or prompt :DDD Thanks for reading!!!

_Six months later._

Stiles braced his hands against the headboard. It was thumping particularly hard and he was pretty sure there was going to be a sizeable dent in the wall when they were done. Thankfully, Derek owned the entire building so it really didn’t matter what damage they caused.

‘Oh fuck, oh God, you’re killing me here.’ he panted and Derek’s smile was wicked. He reached for Stiles’ hand, interlocking their fingers and started thrusting even harder. Stiles was pretty sure his ass would never recover but what a glorious way to go. He tilted his hips up and the change in angle sent Derek’s cock skidding over his prostate repeatedly, until Stiles could barely think straight. He tightened his legs around Derek’s hips and scratched his nails down his back and held on tightly, biting off a yell when Derek got a hand around his cock and pumped him several times, tipping Stiles over the edge and into an orgasm so intense he swore he went blind for a couple of seconds.

Derek snarled in his face, eyes flickering between green and gold as he drove in one last time. He shuddered, losing all control and shifting as he came and Stiles watched every second of it. He’d grown to love all of Derek’s faces and knew how much Derek was feeling to release the wolf like this, how much he trusted Stiles to show that part of himself so freely.

He reached up with both hands, cupping Derek’s face and tracing gentle thumbs over his lack of eyebrows, a constant source of amusement to Stiles that his wonderfully hirsute mate would lose his most distinctive feature (after those beautiful eyes of course) when he was supposed to be more hairy, not less. Derek heaved deep breaths, nostrils flared as he drank in their combined scents. They’d spent one blissful afternoon in bed and Derek had explained at length about scenting and marking and Stiles had ended up very happy and covered in come and that had also been the afternoon when he’d discovered that his omega was just as keen to fuck him as he was to be fucked. Omegas being the penetrative partner was still considered in the range of scandalous kinks, in spite of people claiming to be more open minded, and Stiles had never ever been on the receiving end. He’d quickly come to realise that he was certainly down for it, and now he happily spread his legs for Derek whenever his wolf got that predatory gleam in his eyes.

Derek nuzzled his wrist and eased himself out, flopping down next to Stiles and draping an arm over him to pull him close. Stiles obediently turned and let himself be cuddled. Derek’s tongue ran over the mating bite at the back of his neck, a werewolf custom Stiles had happily agreed to, and made a deep content rumbling noise.

‘How long do we have?’ he asked and Stiles sat up a little and checked the clock on the nightstand.

‘About two hours?’ He grinned, reading Derek like a book. ‘Enough time for another round, I think.’

‘Good.’ Derek shoved at Stiles until he could lie on him and Stiles groaned at the added weight. Derek had practically no body fat and all that weight was in muscle so he was very heavy. His skin was hot and wet with sweat and Stiles’ cock made a valiant effort to get back in the game. He ran a hand down Derek’s back, sliding it over his backside and in until he felt slippery wetness.

‘You’ll have to give me ten minutes.’ he said and Derek dragged his tongue up Stiles’ neck.

‘Best you put your mouth to work then, alpha.’ he purred and Stiles laughed and then squawked when Derek sat up and clambered over him to sit on his face.

-

Talia lowered the paper she was reading and raised an eyebrow at Laura. They were all having breakfast together as was the custom for all pack members on a Saturday morning if they weren’t busy. It came as no surprise that it was only them. The last six months had seen a great deal of changes and everybody was still adapting.

‘She what?’ Her voice went up in surprise.

‘Yeah.’ Laura chuckled. ‘She spent the entire hearing screeching about werewolves and how we all deserved to be murdered. I barely had to do anything. Needless to say nobody believed her and she’s now being transferred to a very secure facility. I doubt she’s going to see the light of day anytime soon.’

‘Good.’ James took another bite of toast. ‘I think I speak for both of us when I say it couldn’t have happened to a nicer person.’

‘Gerard’s arraignment was just as entertaining.’ Braeden gave Laura a proud smile. ‘And with all the evidence that Chris and Allison had on him, he’ll be lucky if he doesn’t die in prison.’

‘Your mate is a smart cookie.’ James winked at his daughter.

‘I know.’ Braeden smiled. ‘So what time are the in-laws arriving?’

‘Lunch time.’ Talia checked her watch. ‘Laura, call your brother and ask him if he’s ever going to show up. Also check if Stiles is going to be in any fit state to even sit down for lunch.’

‘Okay, that’s TMI.’ Laura said, but she dug out her cell and dialled anyway. ‘Hey loser. Where the fuck are you?’ She got up, going out onto the terrace to talk.

Talia grinned at Derek’s outraged response, easily audible to wolf ears.

‘He’s happy.’ she declared. ‘He hasn’t been this feisty since before Paige.’

‘Stiles is good for him.’ James said. ‘And he’s turned out to be one hell of a co-editor and what he’s doing with the paper is amazing.’

‘The whole town’s fallen in love with him.’ Braeden said.

‘That they have.’ Talia took out her own cell and checked her messages. ‘Peter says that he and Chris are on their way. They’ve been helping Allison, Scott and Isaac put up the new bed.’

‘That must be traumatic.’ James chuckled. ‘It’s one thing to know they’re all mated and another to see the actual evidence.’

The trio had been something of a surprise, but as it turned out Isaac was more than delighted with having two beta mates and Scott and Allison both doted on him. Jackson had been extremely suspicious of the whole thing once he’d found out about Chris, but Allison had reached out and they had been working on their relationship. Once they’d established that Chris and Peter were equally embarrassing, particularly now they were in their second honeymoon period, they’d suddenly become as thick as thieves.

‘So lunch at the inn, then we can take Noah and Claudia for a little tour.’ James said. ‘Boyd said that he and Erica would love to join us. Danny’s volunteered to cover the inn this afternoon.’

‘Excellent.’ Talia leaned over to kiss him. ‘I think this is a good time to tell them. They’ve had six months to get used to Derek and Stiles being together and by all accounts, Derek really likes them and says they can be trusted.’

‘Oh God.’ Laura groaned, coming back in from the terrace. ‘I don’t even want to know. Apparently they need at least half an hour because…’ She made a face that expressed her disgust very eloquently.

‘Ah.’ James chuckled. ‘I know that feeling.’

‘Dad!’ Laura clapped her hands over her ears and glared at him. ‘I do not need to know!’

‘How the hell do you think you were born?’ Talia grinned and got up. ‘Come on. Let’s go make a good impression.’

‘Good luck on that.’ James laughed, following her out the dining room and making her shriek when he playfully slapped her on the ass.

Laura flopped into the chair next to Braeden, rolling her eyes in typical Hale fashion.

‘None of them have any decorum.’ she grumbled and Braeden kissed the top of her head.

‘I know my love.’ she replied. ‘I’m mated to _you_.’

-

Derek pulled his t-shirt over his head and blatantly ogled Stiles from across the room. He’d come out of the shower completely naked with just a towel draped over his head, giving Derek the perfect opportunity to look as much as he wanted to. Stiles was so beautifully put together, broad shouldered but also lean and his pale mole-dotted skin was so inviting. Every line was elegant but also endearingly jarring, Stiles’ oversized hands and feet making him look like a cub. It was only added to by his natural clumsiness and Derek smirked when he tripped over the rug by their bed.

Being mated was nothing like he’d expected it to be. Every day brought laughter and happiness and he was so glad he’d taken a chance on the young man he now shared his life with.

His phone rang again and Derek glanced at the screen. It was Laura and he cheerfully declined the call and then sent her a middle finger emoji. Laura was still complaining that they would be late because they were spending too much time in bed. Derek took every chance to remind her about how she and Braeden had done exactly the same when they were mated. He chuckled when a flurry of angry emojis came back at him and shoved his phone back in his jeans.

‘Laura’s having a conniption.’ he said, going over and gently tugging down Stiles’ shirt. He seemed to get stuck in them frequently and it was one of Derek’s favourite things.

‘Laura always has conniptions.’ Stiles grinned. ‘She’s going to have an embolism one of these days.’

‘Werewolves can’t have embolisms.’ Derek said and kissed him. ‘Thankfully because you’re right. She gets far too wound up about things.’ He settled his hands on Stiles’ hips, holding him close. ‘Are you ready?’

‘To give my parents the big wolfy reveal?’ Stiles asked. He shrugged but Derek could hear the way his heart was racing and smell his anxiety. ‘I just hope they’re okay about it. It’s a lot to take in.’

‘We’ll be gentle.’ Derek promised. ‘Gentler than Allison was with you.’

Stiles huffed a laugh.

‘These last six months have been crazy.’ he admitted. ‘Moving here and settling in and seeing my best friend through falling in love with not one but two people. Your pack dealing with Chris and Peter and Jackson. It’s a lot.’

Derek knew what he meant. All the drama that he and Stiles had been through at the beginning was nothing compared to the three months of angst as Scott had to get through his _I may not be as straight as previously thought_ phase and come to terms with his relationship with two other people. Add in Peter and Chris reconnecting in rather spectacular fashion, Jackson’s uncertainty about suddenly having his other father back in his life, Allison’s getting to know Peter and the pack had been alternately playing referee and audience. Not that they didn’t enjoy a good rousing drama, because they certainly did. Cora had been furious because she’d missed everything with Kate and him and Stiles and so Derek had to keep her informed via Skype. She had, however, completely taken to Stiles and they were now terrible co-conspirators.

‘I know.’ He bumped Stiles’ nose with his own. It too was one of his favourite things, cute and turned up and perfect for nibbling on. ‘But you’re handling it beautifully.’

‘Flatterer.’ Stiles snorted but his scent was sugary with happiness.

They finally made it out the loft. It was on the top floor of the building Derek had bought. The one below was now occupied by their new threesome and the one below that was going to b the property of one Beacon Hills Sheriff and the omega that had seemingly knocked him flying right off his feet. Jordan ahd adapted very well to being in the Hale pack, not least because that conversation with Talia had seen him breathing a huge sigh of relief and showing them his bruning orange eyes and his ability to withstand fire. Peter had been ecstatic. His studies into the supernatural (astrophysics was far from his only speciality) had identified Jordan as a hellhound and had only been matched by his excitement on discovering that Lydia was a banshee, something she’d never even known herself. They had built a rather entertaining relationship, their mutual genius terrifying anyone with any sense in the pack to steer well clear when they were convening.

Derek grinned to himself. Everyone except for Stiles, that was. His mate wasn’t just brave and kind and wildly attractive but he was also incredibly intelligent and Derek happily basked in the glow of his razor sharp wit that gave even Peter a run for his money. He fit into the pack, made Derek deliriously happy and was possibly the best thing to ever happen to him.

He thought this all the way down to the parking lot, taking Stiles hand as they walked over to the Jeep. Stiles gave him a quizzical smile when Derek backed him up against the car and kissed the hell out of him for a good five minutes.

‘What was that for?’ he asked when Derek let him go. Derek smiled and tugged the chain out of Stiles’s shirt with his forefinger. It had gone around his neck the morning they’d woken up mated and stayed there ever since.

‘Just thinking about how things work out.’ he said. Stiles amber eyes caught the sun and were filled with warmth.

‘Silly wolf.’ he replied and kissed him back.


End file.
